ECB Board Candidate: EPP Group convinced of Yves Mersch's professional record.

The EPP Group voted in favour today of the appointment of the Head of Luxembourg's central bank, Yves Mersch, to the Executive Board of the European Central Bank.

"We voted in favour as we are fully convinced that Mr Mersch is of recognised standing and has the professional qualifications and experience in monetary and banking matters needed to exercise the functions of a Member of the Executive Board of the ECB. The European Union needs stability in these times of crisis and the European Central Bank has a crucial role to play", said Joseph Daul, Chairman of the EPP Group.

The EPP Group Vice-Chairwoman responsible for Economic Affairs, Corien Wortmann-Kool MEP, pointed out that it is clear now that the Parliament will prefer a woman candidate to have an ECB Board with a better gender balance and that Council President Van Rompuy has taken note of this. "But for the EPP Group, in the current economic circumstances, it is essential to have the ECB Board in full strength as soon as possible and Mr Mersch has excellent credentials for the job. It is therefore irresponsible to take a qualified candidate hostage on grounds of gender balance. In view of the tight vote and the current economic problems, we call on the Council to swiftly proceed with Mr Mersch's appointment", she said.