Franck Portier's picture
Affiliation: 
University College London
Credentials: 
Professor of Economics

Voting history

The Eurozone COVID-19 Crisis: EU Policy Options

Question 2: What is the best mechanism to pay for economic support provided by and to EU member states to combat the COVID-19 crisis?

Answer:
Joint borrowing by member states (e.g. Coronabonds)
Confidence level:
Confident
Comment:
A- Spendings should first be financed by national budgets B- In case some transfers between countries are needed, that could be financed by Coronabonds. But there is no magic. If those bonds can be issued with a low risk premium, that is an implicit transfer from, say, Germany to, say, Italy. I am ready to eventually finance it as a tax payer, but I am doubtful that public opinion in Germany or the Netherlands would agree.

Question 1: What is the total size of funding that you would advocate at the EU level in support of its members to weather the COVID-19 crisis this year?

 

 

Answer:
5% of EZ GDP: No more than current commitments
Confidence level:
Not confident
Comment:
A- We do not know the cost of the Covid-19 crisis, so that it is hard to assess the amount of many that is necessary. B- I believe that governments should do as much as possible to send on unemployment benefits, transfers to households and firms. C- European institutions are needed if and only if the two following conditions are simultaneously met: C1- some countries are more severely hit that others (which seems to be the case) C2- and those countries cannot borrow as much as they would like to (which also seems to be the case). If C1 and C2 conditions are met, then some transfers between countries via the EU are justified. I don't believe that those transfers should be conditional to structural reforms (let's not aim at two birds with one stone), but the use of the money should be monitored.

Bitcoin and the City

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Question 2: Do you agree that the regulatory oversight of cryptocurrencies needs to be increased?

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Answer:
Strongly agree
Confidence level:
Extremely confident
Comment:
There is middle way between the jungle and Orwell's 1984 world. Cryptocurrencies should be regulated, not because they threaten financial system stability, but because, as cash, they are used for tax evasion and criminal activities. I do not think that this supervision will infringe human rights.

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Question 1: Do you agree that cryptocurrencies are currently a threat to the stability of the financial system, or can be expected to become a threat in the next couple of years?

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Answer:
Disagree
Confidence level:
Confident

Global risks from rising debt and asset prices

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Question 2: Is the loose monetary policy of major central banks responsible for the recent increase in global leverage or asset values?

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Answer:
Neither agree nor disagree
Confidence level:
Confident

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