EU Ombudsman unyielding on G30, demands Draghi leave lobby group

In her final decision on European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi’s membership of the Group of Thirty (G30), the European Ombudsman Emily O’Reilly has voiced disappointment about the bank’s reluctance to follow her recommendation to suspend Draghi’s G30 membership and to bar future presidents from joining the group.

CEO’s monetary and financial policy researcher Kenneth Haar, who filed the complaint at the heart of the dispute, commented:

“We very much welcome today’s decision by the Ombudsman. It is encouraging to see her unpick the attempts of the ECB to explain away President Draghi’s irresponsible proximity to bankers from some of the biggest, most influential financial institutions.

“This is the last word on the issue from the Ombudsman, but her decision helps us take this to the next stage. Ms O’Reilly has highlighted that the ECB is not just rejecting her recommendations but is also on collision course with the European Parliament's demand for it to follow international good practice in this area. The heads of most central banks, including the US Federal Reserve, are not members of the G30. We will ensure members of the EU Parliament are aware of this and take swift action.”

Notes to editors:

• The European Ombudsman's final decision on the case.

• Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) is a watchdog group monitoring corporate lobbying. In November 2016 we filed the complaint at the heart of the Ombudsman’s investigation as we are concerned by the close and confidential channels of communication the G30 facilitates between big banks and the ECB, given the risk of these informal shortcuts diminishing the independence of the public central bank of the Eurozone.

• Corporate Europe Observatory’s response to the ECB’s rejection of the Ombudsman’s recommendations (18 April 2018)

• Corporate Europe Observatory’s response to the Ombudsman’s initial decision (January 17 2018)

Contact

Kenneth Haar, kenneth@corporateeurope.org, +45 2360 0631