|
|
The finance ministers of Spain, Ireland and Luxembourg will likely be in the running for Eurogroup president when incumbent Mário Centeno steps down next month.
Centeno resigned from the Portuguese government on Tuesday and announced he will not run for a second term leading the eurozone’s informal club of finance ministers.
The Eurogroup presidency, which carries a term of two and a half years, has no legal status. Yet it became one of Europe’s most influential economic posts during the crises of the last dozen years, leading the 19 countries to thrash out bailouts such as those that kept Greece in the euro.
“On Thursday, I will inform my Eurogroup colleagues of my decision not to seek a second mandate, as by 15 June I will step down as finance minister of Portugal,” Centeno tweeted. “I will launch the call for candidates and outline the process for the election,” which is scheduled for July 9.
North-South divisions exposed in the debates of recent years have turned the talking shop into a battleground, often pitting ministers in all-night negotiations over proposals such as a eurozone budget. The next Eurogroup chief will have to bridge the chasm and bring fresh impetus to plans for deeper financial integration to protect citizens against future crises — as well as the present turmoil brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
Top treasury officials from across the eurozone expect Spain’s Nadia Calviño, Ireland’s Paschal Donohoe and Luxembourg’s Pierre Gramegna to come forward as candidates once Centeno calls for nominations Thursday.
All three ministers declined to comment on their possible candidacies.
Gramegna, from a liberal political party, retweeted Centeno’s departure message with the comment “Congratulations Mario for what you achieved as a President of the #Eurogroup, especially the ambitious financial responses to the challenges of the #Covid19 pandemic. I appreciated our bilateral cooperation & wish you all the best for the future.”
Donohoe, a center-right politician, expressed his regret about Centeno’s decision, describing the Portuguese in an emailed statement as an “excellent President of the Eurogroup and he is not only a colleague, but also a friend.”
The Irishman is still in the throes helping form a new government in Dublin following February’s general election. “It is hoped this process can be concluded in the near future,” a spokesperson said.
Calviño, from Centeno’s Socialist political group, thanked the Portuguese on Twitter, saying, “It has been a great pleasure to work closely during these last years and I hope we’ll continue to cooperate wherever life takes you.”