MEP Sven Giegold, financial and economic policy spokesperson of the Greens/EFA group commented:
The resignation of financial market commission Jonathan Hill is consistent. It deserves respect that Hill acted so quickly. This should serve the British government as an example. An adjourned game until a British notification to withdraw from the EU. Waiting for a Tory conference will make the economic effects of Brexit worse. Neither the EU-27 nor the UK can afford a prolongation of insecurity for investment.
During the Brexit negotiations we have to negotiate firmly when it comes to the City of London: There may not be any cherry picking when it comes to the four European freedoms. There is no free movement of capital for the City without free movement of people. Passporting and grandfathering for financial services is not acceptable without fully accepting the rules and duties of the common market.
Now we have to realize Hill’s idea of a capital markets union without him. The Euro needs a deeper integrated capital market so that the costs of economic shocks are distributed more widely. To this end we need to harmonize insolvency, civil proceedings, contract and tax law. Jonathan Hill though has never dared to propose this logical step out of deference to a euroskeptic Britian. We might be better able to realize a true capital markets union without the UK. Anyhow, the capital markets union can only complement banking based financing of companies. Furthermore, it should create a solid legal framework for greening financial products.