Cuerpo says that Spain will put forward a candidate for the ECB leadership but does not reveal who it will be

Brussels – The Minister of Economy, Trade and Enterprise, Carlos Cuerpo, stated this Thursday that Spain will put forward a candidacy for a position on the executive board of the European Central Bank (ECB) in order to maintain its presence after the departure of Luis de Guindos as vice president, although he has avoided clarifying which of the four posts that will be decided over the next two years it will run for, nor has he said whether the Government already has in mind the name or profile of the person with whom it will seek a seat.

“Spain has a very clear message here, which is that it wants to remain on that executive board, it wants to continue having a leading role also in the European Central Bank,” he said in statements to the press in Brussels, before attending a meeting of eurozone finance ministers, in which the Greek Kyriakos Pierrakakis was precisely chosen as the new president of the Eurogroup.

In this context, the Spanish minister has insisted that Spain’s “strategy” is to argue to its counterparts that Spain “must play a leading role in the institutions,” including the ECB, not only because of the moment the country’s economy is going through, but also because of the “weight it has as a shareholder” within the issuing institution.

He also stressed the “importance” of Spain being present in “any balancing act.” “We will present, you will see, a candidacy,” he underlined, before adding that it will be a “strong, competent” candidacy that guarantees that Spain maintains its presence.

Asked whether the Government already has a chosen candidate and whether it could aim to replace Christine Lagarde at the head of the ECB with a candidate such as the former governor of the Bank of Spain, Pablo Hernández de Cos, the minister considered that “this is not the time to talk about names” and avoided clarifying which seat Spain is aiming for.

Even so, he wanted to make it clear that his opinion of Hernández de Cos “could not be better” given his experience and “excellent” reputation, while stressing that Spain is a “breeding ground for outstanding male and female candidates” for “top positions.” (11 December)