HC Deb 07 February 1994 vol 237 cc11-2W
Mr. Spearing

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his oral answer of 1 February,Official Report, column 734, concerning the accountability of the managers of the European investment fund, for what period funds at their disposal have been part of the annual budget of the European Community; what are the names of those who have the duty of appointing the managers of the fund and who appoints them and what are the names, experience, current employment and other relevant interests of the managers already appointed and the number of vacancies.

The Prime Minister

The proposed European investment fund cannot be established until the necessary treaty

holders are believed to be correct, but the formal recording of the ethnic background of applicants for judicial office only began on 1 October 1991, so such information may be incomplete. Aggregated information is not generally kept on the average ages of judges or on their school and university background. However, the results of a recent special exercise in relation to average ages are set out.

amendment has been ratified by all the European Community's member states. Only then can managers for the fund be appointed. Meanwhile, the situation will remain as follows:

  1. (a) No funds are at the disposal of the managers of the fund. The funding referred to in my answer of 1 February is the provision taken by the European Community for its planned subscription to the share capital of the fund. This subscription will be paid over four years. The Community's 1994 Budget contains provision for the first tranche and was adopted on 16 December 1993.
  2. (b) The draft statute of the fund places the ultimate responsibility for appointing the managers of the fund with the fund's general meeting. This meeting would comprise representatives of the fund's shareholders: the European investment bank, the European Community and financial institutions from member states. The EIB and the EC would hold the majority of the share capital, and their representatives at the meeting would be accountable to the EIB's board of governors, and the ECOFIN Council, respectively.
  3. (c) The draft statute envisages that day-to-day management would be in the hands of a financial committee. This would have three members, one of whom would be a representative of the EIB, one a representative of the EC, and one a representative of the financial institutions. No nomination to this committee can be made until the fund is established.