In the medium term, if the entire amount of capital currently tied up by NPLs is used to support new lending, total credit volume in the euro area may increase, in the most optimistic variant, by about 2.5% and up to 6% in the group of 6 countries with higher NPLs.
* * *  Mr Cœuré, we need to talk about Italy, where two populist parties are currently trying to form a coalition. In a draft paper they demanded debt relief of € billion from the European Central Bank. They have since withdrawn that demand, but it’s still a shock, isn’t it? The political discussion is still ongoing in Italy.