Euroen styrtdykker videre etter en ny runde i den endeløse rekka av
skandaler rundt franske (og tyske, belgiske, italienske) toppolitikere.
Den kommende sjefen for den europeiske sentralbanken anklages for svindel.
At folk som er så svinaktig rike ikke klarer å holde seg på matta bekrefter
utsagnet til Zygmunt Bauman om at det som driver kapitalismen ikke er
tilfredsstillelsen av ønsket, men "ønsket om ønsket".
Karsten Johansen
Fra Daily Telegraph i dag:
Euro hits new low as bank chief faces investigation
By Patrick Bishop in Paris and George Trefgarne
THE euro fell to a record low against the pound last night after it emerged
that Jean-Claude Trichet, governor of the Bank of France and the next
president of the European Central Bank, is under investigation for his role
in the scandal at Credit Lyonnais, a French stateowned bank.
The news broke after currency markets in London had closed but spread alarm
in New York, where the markets were still open. Late last night, the euro
had fallen to a record low of 90.8 US cents, a third of a cent lower than
its close in London. Against the pound it also hit a low of 58p.
M Trichet is being investigated for "spreading false information on the
market and publishing inexact accounts" in relation to Credit Lyonnais, the
Bank of France said yesterday. Credit Lyonnais collapsed in 1993 and M
Trichet was the treasury official overseeing its rescue.
The investigation may not lead to charges, but the development casts doubt
over whether M Trichet will take up the ECB position in 2002. The ECB, of
whose council M Trichet is a member, refused to comment on the summons. The
appointment of M Trichet, 57, to succeed Wim Duisenberg at the bank followed
diplomatic wrangling by the French government at a Brussels summit in May
1998.
The row got the euro off to a rocky start and prompted criticism that the
ECB - which is meant to be independent - was subject to French political
interference. The Credit Lyonnais scandal has dogged the French
establishment for nearly 10 years. The bank was brought down by lending
money to those involved in some of the biggest corporate disasters of the
past 20 years, including Robert Maxwell, Olympia & York (builders of Canary
Wharf) and Polly Peck.
The government has bailed Credit Lyonnais out three times, spending £14
billion. The bank was forced to sell most of its overseas operations and
close domestic branches. The European Commission insisted on the remainder
of the business being privatised before allowing a state rescue last year.
M Trichet, who was director of the treasury from 1987 to 1993, said he was
"profoundly surprised" by the investigation. He said: "I have total
confidence in the justice of our country and will be totally available to
the investigating magistrate to whom I will demonstrate the total good faith
of the treasury management."
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