With its granular and targeted instruments, macroprudential policy provides the most appropriate tool for staving off financial stability risks in the specific areas where they arise, being it at the level of a country, a sector or a financial institution. An effective conduct of macroprudential policy can therefore help monetary policy to remain focussed on fulfilling its price stability mandate.
First, I will discuss some lessons from our experience of monetary policy in the euro area during the first five years of the ECB. Second, I will look ahead and elaborate on ongoing developments in the context to the Convention on the Future of Europe, which aims to lay the foundations for a Constitutional Treaty for the European Union.