The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr Philip Hammond)
A meeting of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) will be held in Brussels on 23 January 2018. European Finance Ministers will discuss the following:
Early morning session
The Eurogroup President will brief Ministers on the outcomes of the 22 January meeting of the Eurogroup, and the Commission will provide an update on the current economic situation in the EU.
Deepening of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)
The Council will hold a policy debate on the deepening of the EMU.
Current financial services legislative proposals
The presidency will present information on the current legislative proposals in the field of financial services.
VAT: simplification of rates and simplification for SMEs
The Commission will present proposals to reform the rules on VAT rates and structures and to simplify VAT obligations for SMEs.
Presidency work programme
The Bulgarian presidency will present its work programme for January to June 2018, followed by an exchange of views.
European semester 2018
The Council will be asked to adopt Council conclusions on the Annual Growth Survey 2018 and the Council conclusions on the Alert Mechanism Report 2018. The Council will also be asked to approve a Council recommendation on the economic policy of the euro area.
Action plan to tackle non-performing loans in Europe
The Council will exchange views on a factual report by the Commission regarding the implementation of the action plan to tackle non-performing loans in Europe.
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