Senior EU business executives still strongly in favour of euro

21/5/2014

By Sarah Gordon, Europe Business Editor

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Senior company executives in the European Union still strongly support the single currency, but enthusiasm in the biggest member states for further European integration is waning.

More than 90 per cent of the 3,100 chief executives, managing directors, chairmen or other senior executives of listed and private businesses interviewed by Grant Thornton, wanted to see the euro survive. Three in four said that belonging to a single currency zone had benefited their company.

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But businesses in France and Germany were markedly less positive on the prospect of further integration between member states compared with this time last year. In Germany, 55 per cent of companies are now open to further economic integration, down 20 percentage points from this time last year. In France, support has dropped 12 percentage points to 57 per cent.

“France and Germany have historically been the driving forces behind the EU project and together they account for nearly half of eurozone GDP,” said Scott Barnes, chief executive of Grant Thornton UK. “They are now united behind an increased loss of faith in further integration.”

Despite declining enthusiasm in France and Germany, support for greater economic integration is increasing in a number of countries, including Ireland – 50 per cent last year to 77 per cent this year, Poland – 54 per cent to 67 per cent, and Italy – 56 per cent to 61 per cent.

In the UK, a majority of business leaders – 57 per cent – said they did not want any further European integration, comfortably the highest level of opposition in any European economy. The next highest was the Netherlands on 26 per cent.

The UK’s Institute of Directors on Monday released research showing that 60 per cent of its members said their support for continued EU membership was conditional on successful reform in key areas, such as the directives on working time, parental leave and temporary agency workers.

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Only 11 per cent of the 1,400 members polled agreed that “the EU currently presents a viable socio-economic model”.

“We want to see a discussion now about how the EU needs to change, not an all-consuming debate on In v Out,” said Simon Walker, director-general of the IoD. “Business needs to see the reform agenda put first, not pushed to the sidelines by the fringe elements of this debate.”

Just 6 per cent of IoD members backed further integration.

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