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UPDATE 1-German lawmakers seek veto right on bailout payments

Published 04/13/2011, 11:04 AM
Updated 04/13/2011, 11:08 AM

* Audit body recommends parliament review ESM fund payments

* MPs want control over future German payments into fund

* Lawmakers have consultation right only over EFSF payments

* German FinMin to push for same model for ESM funds

(Recast, adds quotes from finmin, analysts, lawmakers)

By Andreas Rinke

BERLIN, April 13 (Reuters) - German lawmakers should have a right of veto over the country's contributions to a permanent fund being set up to bail out fiscally troubled euro zone states, senior politicians said on Wednesday.

The European Stability Mechanism is due to come into force in 2013 with 80 billion euros in cash reserves meant to assure it holds a triple-A rating.

Europe's dominant economy has undertaken to pay 21.7 billion of that into the fund, which will replace the smaller, temporary European Financial Stability Facility being tapped by bailout beneficiaries Ireland and Portugal.

The ESM will also be backed by 620 billion euros of guarantees, increasing the euro zone's potential firepower for dealing with future financial crises and in effect committing member states to additional contributions if required.

Analysts said there was little risk that action by German lawmakers would hinder the functioning of the ESM, though it was clear parliament would press to retain the ability to potentially control the terms of bailouts.

Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said he expected parliament to approve any funding requests.

PARLIAMENTARY RIGHTS

Germany's lower parliamentary house, the Bundestag, has the right of consultation over EFSF payments, and the country is embroiled in a debate over whether contributions into the ESM should face the same level of scrutiny, be waved through automatically or require full approval.

The issue resurfaced after a warning from the auditors' court led some members of the Bundestag's budget committee to demand that any payments into the ESM beyond the initial contributions should face a parliamentary vote.

"By all means, the German Bundestag (lower house of parliament) must approve (them)," said Birgit Homburger, parliamentary floor leader of the junior coalition partner, the Free Democrats (FDP).

"It is clear that budget rules (requiring parliamentary approval for bailout funding) must be adhered to," said Michael Meister, deputy parliamentary leader of Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrat (CDU) party.

However, Germany needed to take care "not to create rules that bring instability again to financial markets," he added.

Schaeuble moved to take the heat out of the debate, telling parliament at question time he expected authorisation of the ESM funding agreed by European leaders.

"We are very much at the beginning of the consultations... the details must still be negotiated in a treaty that needs the ratification of German legislators," he said.

He said he would recommend the approval process for ESM payments follow the model used for the EFSF.

Daniel Gros, director of the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels, said parliamentary concerns would be very unlikely to hinder the successful operation of the ESM.

(Writing by Brian Rohan, additional reporting by Thomas Atkins and Brian Rohan; Editing by John Stonestreet)

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