Sharon Bowles MEP on the Today Programme (Sharon Bowles MEP)

Sharon Bowles MEP <info@sharonbowles.org.uk>

Sharon Bowles MEP on the Today Programme

August 30, 2011 2:11 PM

To hear Sharon's views re Eurozone debt crisis click on this link (16 mins in):

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/b006qj9z/console

Or read the transcript:

Today Programme, Tuesday 30^th August 2011

Transcript of Sharon's interview

Presenter: "Are you satisfied that governments are living up to their promise to sort out the Greek problem in a timely fashion that they first said they would?

Sharon: "I think my quote has been rather similar to that of Jean-Claude (Trichet) in that I have said that there has been 'too little, too uncertain, too late.' To some extent there is a bit of a problem if you have to have things that go back to national parliaments and that's the situation we are with the latest…

Presenter: "You mean this is an inherent problem in the process? Are you therefore satisfied that national governments are doing there best?

Sharon: "I think it's a bit of both. I think they needed to think bigger because in order to stabilise markets you have to have guarantees that are so big they're never called. Now, normally, that's something that comes through a central bank. They didn't do a big enough rescue fund even though it looked big in their terms and it looks big if you're thinking about taking it on to their balance sheet for their own national rating…

Presenter: "So to summarise, it seems that you have some sympathy for them but you don't feel they are doing things quickly enough or in a large enough fashion. Is that a fair reflection of what you believe?"

Sharon: "I guess that's a fair reflection."

Presenter: "Do you think therefore, if that is your view, that the Euro will survive in its present form? NO two-tier system and no country falling out.

Sharon: "I think a two-tier system, a fallout, or any other kind of demise of the Euro is what I have said is the impossible because the costs are too great, including the costs to the UK…"

Presenter: "But it's hardly impossible is it? The system could fall apart?

Sharon: "Yes, it's not impossible but if you're looking for alternatives for things that previously have been deemed improbable, like continued intervention of the ECB, Eurobonds and all of these other things, are better solutions.

Presenter: "But would it not be better to have a currency fallout? I mean, everyone says lets try and keep everything together but there comes a point when surely we should say; 'look, let's throw away the weaker parts of this so the stronger core can survive. In your view, might that not be a better way forward?"

Sharon: "It sounds very neat but if you look at the interconnectedness of our banking systems, who owes what sovereign debt and the various exposures, the technical defaults on all kinds of things, re-pricing things into different currencies, the knock-on effect in the banking system will be just the same as post-Lehman."

Presenter: "Italyhas just said that it is not going to put in this new tax on the rich which it said it would to try and sort out its finances. What's your message to them given that they seem to have stepped back from their moves to try and sort the problem out?"

Sharon: "Well, they're going to have to find some way to balance the books. I mean, it's up to them to find someway as to how they do that but balancing books is something that everybody's going to have to do and certainly it's going to be demanded as a price for any kind of ongoing rescue by those countries who have got to put up the guarantees."

ENDS