EU Issues Discussed During Molterer's Visit

Ljubljana, 25 May

Austrian Vice Chancellor Wilhelm Molterer and Slovenian officials discussed cooperation in the EU and bilateral ties during Molterer's visit here on Friday. Slovenian preparations for the EU presidency in the first half of 2008 and top issues facing EU finance ministers was the focus of Molterer's meeting with Slovenian counterpart Andrej Bajuk.

According to Bajuk, many open issues in the area of public finances face the EU, which may have to be resolved during Slovenia's stint at the helm of the bloc. Bajuk made a special mention of the pilot project Austria intends to carry out in the area of value added tax.
Speaking about the project, which would see the tax carroussel trimmed by levying VAT only on the end consumer, Bajuk said that Slovenia supports efforts to simply the tax systems in the EU. He added, however, that there were many other issues that also needed tackling.
Meanwhile, Molterer spoke of the excellent relations between Slovenia and Austria at the press conference. "As the vice chancellor and finance minister I intend to do everything in my power to ensure that these excellent relations are fostered," he said.
He echoed Bajuk's view that a number of issues relating to finances needed to be resolved in the EU. According to him, key issues include VAT, tax evasion, cooperation in financial services, financial transparency and the operations of venture capital funds.
"There is also the politico-economic debate in the eurozone, in which our countries can, in my opinion, make a great contribution due to the structure of our economies. But most important is ensuring a greater contribution of small- and medium-sized companies for economic growth and job creation," he said.
Bajuk also said that the EU must give equal treatment to businesses of all sizes in shaping legislation so "as not to ensure the competitiveness of only the biggest organisations". "Specifically I'm talking about the drafting of an insurance directive, where it is the interest of countries like Slovenia that smaller organisations are included," Bajuk said.
The Austrian and Slovenian ministers welcomed the idea to allow EU citizens to borrow money from any EU bank and the idea of European bank cards. Bajuk added that this was not only for the countries to decide on, but for the "private sector to get involved".
Apart from Bajuk, Molterer met Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa during his visit here. In a press release following the meeting, Jansa's office said that the pair spoke about areas where the countries could strengthen ties in the framework of the EU.
Molterer and Jansa also agreed that efforts to find a constructive solution to the issue of Slovenian-German city limits in the Austrian province of Carinthia must continue. Molterer said at today's press conference that efforts were underway to achieve a wide consensus on the issue.

EU Issues Discussed During Molterer's Visit

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