I would go so far as to talk of threefold independence: from national governments of course, but also from short-term trends in the media or financial markets, and last from entrenched camps (the hawks and the doves) or schools of thought, even if all three of them had their own well-established economic background. Consequently, they have been able to take a pragmatic approach to innovation: for example, when Jean Claude Trichet addressed bank liquidity risk through the fixed rate full allotment policy in 2008 or introduced the first security purchases with the SMP in 2010; and of course when Mario Draghi gave his famous “whatever it takes” speech in July 2012 or began expanding non-standard instruments in 2014. 3. The spirit: general European interest These three men have also upheld the European spirit, through their culture and their convictions. Far from being a technocratic arrangement, initially the euro was actually a political aspiration advocated by Helmut Kohl, Jacques Delors and François Mitterrand among others in parallel with German reunification [slide 4]. And it is now supported by 75% of euro area citizens – the highest approval rating since 2003 – and as many as 77% of Portuguese and 81% of Germans. This popular support is our greatest success and our greatest asset. And it proves that the concept of Europe is popular as long as it stops being abstract and takes the form 2/6  BIS central bankers' speeches  of concrete projects.
It was compiled using your perspective as a school student, as an elder of the village, as a hard working stay at home mother and as a danceloving-father when he gets his paycheck without his wife knowing; or to put simply, as an everyday Samoan citizen. MoneyPACIFIC has produced the Guide and made it easy to understand, and made it accessible to everyone so that you can plan, measure, prioritise or just to be aware of how  BIS central bankers’ speeches  1  much you are spending for everyday necessities. Again the intension is not to dictate how much your wallet is crying but to ensure that your wallet is happy to deliver a well sought out purpose for you and your families. To round up my remarks, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the New Zealand and Australian Governments for the support afforded to the MoneyPACIFIC iniative as we have benefitted greatly from the work it carries out for the Pacific communities. I would like to thank each and every one of you for making the time to attend today’s MoneyPACIFIC Money Guide launch.