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TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION OF EUROPE |
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Award Information/Background Information Jean-Claude Juncker The Luxemburg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker is somewhat of a political wonder in Europe. By the age of 29 he was already Minister of Finance and since then he continued to be a member of the Luxemburg government. In 1995, he became Prime Minister. His commitment to the interests of the European taxpayer before and after the introduction of the euro, along with his efforts to stabilize the European Community currency are highly impressive. His previous government meetings, conducted in his own unique style, without crossing the political line, are legendary. When Prime Minister Juncker spoke, members of such meetings, including Heads of State and the Government of the E.U, immediately realised that serious discussions were taking place. In spite of his directness towards the press, particularly when asked about the culprits in a disastrous case, he still remains mediator par excellence of the EU. In addition to his activities as Minister of Finance, Prime Minister and Head of the Luxemburg government, he is also a member of the World Bank Board of Directors and that of the IMF. Impressive credentials such as these are hard to find, even among the political elite of Europe. However, it is only since he took office as Prime Minister that Juncker is regarded as one of the great European politicians. As the head of the government of a small grand duchy, he has made tremendous efforts for the equal rights of the smaller EU member states. Juncker is one of the key figures for the future of Europe’s taxpayers, and not only with regard to the reforms and the future expansion in the East. The main issues for reform are the rearrangement of the political decision-making process and a clear delimitation of jurisdictions within Europe. Only a institutionally reformed Europe with a stable common currency, clearly distributed jurisdiction, and ready to introduce reforms, can have a future. Citizens must be able to put their trust in Europe; they must be confident that their interests will be safeguarded. Despite Juncker’s desire for a stable Europe, he is nevertheless, willing to make compromises with regards to the objectives for 2004, which, hopefully, by then the economic condition of all countries should be equal, and in accordance with the agreement of the Heads of State and Government of the EU. However, in his public statements, he always stresses the fact that the agreed emphasis on stability should be kept. In the beginning of March, Juncker issued a warning: „Those who give the impression that stability is only an invention of the founders of the Monetary Union and not of the current actors, distance themselves from the basic consensus on which the Monetary Union was built.“ In view of the Barcelona Conclusions, he said: „we must be extremely cautious not to resort to shallow formulations that do not do justice to what we agreed there ". Prime Minister Juncker is also an advocate of competition. Hence, Luxemburg has a considerable economic openness, which has revived the production markets, leading to extremely high levels of productivity and lower than average EU prices. The key figures are in favour of Juncker’s policy. Luxemburg has considerable growth, low unemployment and budget surpluses, combined with low taxes. Perhaps many of the large neighbour states may wish to follow this example. As a representative of a small country, Juncker supports a consequent EU deregulation and reform policy in the interests of all European citizens. |
