Brussels, 03/06/2008
Meeting under the auspice of the Trade Union Advisory Committee (TUAC) to the OECD, trade union leaders from OECD countries, including representatives of major European trade union confederations, declared their support for recommendations laid down in a report on hedge funds and private equity. The report [[ DRAFT REPORT with recommendations to the Commission on Hedge funds and private equity, (2007/2238(INI)), Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, Rapporteur: Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, 18.4.2008, Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 2004-2009
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/activities/committees/draftReports.do?language=EN&committeeBean.comId=813#
]]
was prepared by MEP Poul Nyrup Rasmussen and is said to be under attack by private equity and hedge funds lobbying groups.
Among others, the report calls for new regulations:
- to establish EU-wide registration and authorisation of hedge fund and private equity managers;
- to work on appropriate leverage levels for private equity and hedge funds, including by eliminating tax-distortive regulations;
- to extend to private equity existing EU regulation on information, consultation and continuing of employment conditions of workers;
- to prevent conflicts of interest in private equity takeovers by enforcing disclosure of fees and other incentives received by the target company’s directors.
John Monks, General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) said: "This self serving lobbying by the industry was to be expected. But regulation of hedge funds and private equity is crucial. We must also focus on tax. These deals are often based on tax breaks designed originally to boost investment in real things, not mergers and acquisitions".
John Evans, General Secretary of the TUAC said: “The report presented by Poul Nyrup Rassmussen is a much needed response to align the private equity model with the priorities of the real economy in Europe. The recommendations reflect regulatory best practices as discussed recently in several national parliaments in Europe and beyond as evidenced in a report by the TUAC . [[“Regulating Private Equity - Overview of recent parliamentary hearings and legislative initiatives”, TUAC, November 2007, http://www.tuac.org/en/public/e-docs/00/00/02/77/document_doc.phtml]] Voluntary codes of conduct that are favoured by the private equity industry cannot substitute to regulation-backed requirements.”
For more information, please contact:
Pierre Habbard, TUAC Secretariat,
Tel: +33 (0)1 55 37 37 37
email: [email protected]
Patricia Grillo, ETUC Head of Press and Communications
Tel: + 32 (0)2 224 04 30 – GSM: + 32 (0)477 77 01 64
E-mail: [email protected]