Way too many have kept busier defeating Brexit than saving Britain, come what may.

Sir, Philip Stafford writes “City executives describe the EU’s no-deal plans as a ‘nakedly political’ grab for London’s business” “Tail risk” April 9.

Alex Barker in “Barnier vs the Brits” FT already in November 2011, wrote about the fears of Sir Mervin King held about that some Brussels reforms would reshape a vital British industry, banking, to the benefit of eurozone rivals. 

Specifically Barker mentioned: “Underlying the alarm in London is a more visceral fear: that Mr Barnier’s backers on the mainland are using this regulatory marathon to sap London’s strength as Europe’s pre-eminent financial centre.”

And that was when Michel Barnier was only the “European internal market commissioner – a perch giving him oversight of the continent’s financial industry. Arguably, no European Union job is of more consequence for the UK.”

Well yes, there was. Now Michel Barnier, since December 2016, is the European Chief Negotiator for the United Kingdom Exiting the European Union, a job with even more consequence for the UK.

Given the previous rough relationship between Britain and Monsieur Barnier, one could have made a very well argued case that his appointment served no one well. And I am sure many EU nations would have understood that.

As a friend of Britain, I have one way or other argued the previous on several occasions, but with no luck. I believe that is because way too many were kept too interested in just defeating Brexit and so, to try for a better Brexit, did not fit their plans.

https://teawithft.blogspot.com/2017/03/is-michel-barnier-really-sure-about.html

https://teawithft.blogspot.com/2017/07/european-citizens-must-solve-brexit.html

https://teawithft.blogspot.com/2017/07/should-not-mr-michel-barnier-negotiator.html

https://teawithft.blogspot.com/2018/04/what-kind-of-tariffs-is-protectionist.html

@PerKurowski

Much more than a bank union, Europe needs completely new bank regulations

Sir, Alex Barker reports on Michel Barnier, the European commissioners current efforts to create a bank union in Europe, “Time to decide on bank union”, November 26 

If it is for banks to go on lending to “The Infallible”, private or sovereigns, and not to “The Risky” small businesses or entrepreneurs, then Europe does not need a banking union, since Europe will be stalling and falling anyhow. 

What Europe needs, much more than delaying Basel III, is throwing out completely those insane regulations of capital requirements, and now also of liquidity requirements, based on perceived risks. 

By the way does Michel Barnier think that a job in a triple-A rated company is worth much more for the society than a job in an unrated small business? From the regulations he supports it would seem so!

What does Michel Barnier know about fairness?

Sir, Michel Barnier, the EU commissioner overseeing financial services calls on US authorities to apply regulations fairly, “The US must not seek to override EU regulators” June 22. Frankly, what does Michael Barnier, and other regulators know about fairness?

The regulators forced those perceived as risky and who therefore already had to pay higher interest rates, had less access to bank credit, and needed to accept harsher terms for their borrowings, to be additionally discriminated against, by means of causing higher capital requirements for banks than what is the case when banks lend to those officially perceived as not risky.

If that is not unfair what is? Especially when considering that no bank crisis ever has resulted from excessive exposures to what was perceived as risky, as these have always, except when pure fraud was present, resulted from excessive exposure to what had been believed to be absolutely not risky. 

And by discriminating that way so unfairly against the risky, the regulators themselves caused the current crisis, which is something they would have known had they dared to run a simple regression between the real current bank loan problems and their lower capital requirements, as it would have shown a correlation of 1.

I would be scared too by Michel Barnier…and by Sir Mervin King.

Sir, Alex Barker in “Barnier vs the Brits” November 9, writes about the fears of Sir Mervin King in that Brussels reforms will reshape a vital British industry, banking, to the benefit of eurozone rivals. Would that not be a case of plain vulgar under-the-table protectionism?

I do not know much about the competitive aspects of UK banks but, I would indeed be frightened if the banks of my country were to be even partially supervised by someone who when going to Washington D.C. presented in a brochure, as a success story of his office: “A French citizen complained about discriminatory entry fees for tourists to Romanian monasteries. The ticket price for non-Romanians was twice as high as that for Romanian citizens. As this policy was contrary to EU principles, the Romanian SOLVIT centre persuaded the church authorities to establish non-discriminatory entry fees for the monasteries. Solved within 9 weeks.” http://ec.europa.eu/solvit/problems-solved/discrimination/index_en.htm

And, if an owner of a small business or as an entrepreneur, classified as “risky” by the regulators, and in need or want of bank credit, I would also be scared witless by someone who even after the world has gotten itself into such enormous difficulties by the excessive bank exposures to what was ex-ante officially deemed as absolutely not-risky, during a conference in Washington, insisted on that his responsibility as a regulator is simply to avoid excessive risk-taking… but, come to think about it… so does also UK´s Sir Mervin King opine. Help!