In other words, the balance of competences between the national and the European level was not commensurate with the requirements of a currency union. At the same time, I believe that replicating the model of fully-fledged federations in the euro area would not pass the “fitness test” either, mainly for political reasons.
Carolyn and I are delighted to be here to answer your questions about today’s interest rate announcement and our latest Monetary Policy Report (MPR). Let me begin with a few preliminary remarks. The recent drop in oil prices of course dominates this MPR, and dominated our policy discussions. There is considerable uncertainty around the outlook for oil prices and the implications for the economy.