§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to whom the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is accountable; and when he last met(a) the president and (b) the UK director of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. [40374]
§ Clare ShortI have been asked to reply.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is accountable to the 62 Governments and institutions that hold shares in it. The UK Government are one of these shareholders.
The EBRD is governed by 62 governors appointed by the shareholders. The board of governors meets once a year and holds full power over the bank. Governors have delegated responsibility for most general operations of the bank to a board of 23 directors. The powers and responsibilities of the governors and directors are set out in full in the agreement establishing the EBRD (available at www.ebrd.com).
In the case of the UK, the Chancellor of the Exchequer is the UK governor and I am the UK alternate governor. My Department takes lead policy responsibility for EBRD on most issues. The UK director is a DFID official on secondment.
I have met the President of the EBRD on a number of occasions.