Opening the discussion, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy hailed the December European Council as a success. "We reached important conclusions on economic governance by agreeing to a limited treaty revision and the best steps forward to right the overall economic situation." Mr Van Rompuy then also touched upon the EU's international relations, insisting that the European Council had sent a clear signal to Cote d'Ivoire on the need to respect the electoral results.
"The December European Council has demonstrated how resolved Member States are to secure the stability of the EU," said the next speaker, Commission President José Manuel Barroso. He focused on the policy-making shift which the Annual Growth Survey will bring by "shaping economic policies upfront rather than correcting them afterwards."
Tinkering with the system will not work
MEPs taking the floor on behalf of their political groups were more doubtful of the success achieved by the European Council.
"This summit was again a case of 'too little too late'. Opportunities have been missed once again. All we are seeing is wrangling between Member States," was how Socialist MEP Stephen Hughes (UK) summed up the European Council meeting.
"You state that the European Council has reassured the financial markets but the markets remain edgy. And even if things do go well with treaty reform you will be far from reassuring citizens," Sylvie Goulard (ALDE, FR) said in response to Mr Van Rompuy's earlier comments.
"We need to take measures which reassure the markets structurally not superficially," Joseph Daul (EPP, FR) said. "First and foremost this can only come about by national budgets being placed on the right footing. But public EU finances also have to be addressed. Europe needs stronger tools. Member States and the Commission should study the options for this."
"It is true that some may want to go further than has been done but we must remember that we entered the Eurozone crisis without the appropriate tools. We had to invent these as we went along and that is why the pace has sometimes been lacking," Mr Van Rompuy replied.
Growth - not only debt reduction
Rebecca Harms (Greens/EFA, DE) stressed that bringing down debt was not the only priority. "Countries are at the limits of what is acceptable. Dealing with debt must be based on equality and fairness," she said.
"Fiscal retrenchment is essential but we must commit equally to structural reform focused on bringing about growth through the EU2020 strategy, the Innovation Union and the Single Market Act," said Timothy Kirkhope (ECR, UK).
"We are obliged to sort out our debt to be able to move on to growth," replied Mr Barroso. He also argued in favour of structural reform as the only way to sustain Europe's social market economy.
People are paying too much
Irish MEP Joe Higgins (GUE/NL) criticised the Irish bailout. "What is the morality of transferring tens of billions of Euros on to the shoulders of the Irish people?" he asked. "This bailout has made citizens vassals to European banks!" he continued. Mr Barroso replied that the EU should be seen as part of Ireland's solution and certainly not as the cause of Ireland's problem.
"The people don't support you in your project," Nigel Farage (EFD, UK) told Mr Barroso and Mr Van Rompuy. "I hope and pray that the markets break you."
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