Pelicans and marsh grass were not the only victims of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Another casualty was in Britain among some people there who felt aggrieved that their country seemed to get no specially gentle handling from the White House in the name of the “special relationship” between the U.S. and UK. That longstanding concept of a special bilateral tie has only slowly faded in London, even under the new government. But decision-makers in Washington have been saying privately for years that it no longer exists, except in special circumstances such as the wars in the Falklands and the Gulf.
Europe Nears Historic Agreement On Financial Supervision– With Plan Seen Going Farther Than U.S. Reform
Today, European Union finance ministers reached landmark political consensus on sweeping financial supervisory reforms aimed at preventing a recurrence of the 2008 financial crisis. In the plan, hailed as a breakthrough after months of inter-European negotiations, three new watchdog bodies with binding authority will be created: a European Banking Authority; a European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and a European Securities and Markets Authority. In addition, a European Systemic Risk Board will be set up to monitor potential threats to the EU economy, to be chaired by the head of the European Central Bank. The finance ministers’ action follows last week’s provisional agreement between the European Parliament and the Belgian Presidency of the European Council, which augurs well for final passage when the Parliament formally votes on the measures September 22nd.
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