Translation of "quasi-monnaie " (French → English) :

– (FR) Mr President, Commissioner, since the outset, Europe – well, what we call Europe in actual fact means the quasi-State, which passes legislation in Brussels and occasionally in Strasbourg, which hands down justice in Luxembourg and which produces currency in Frankfurt – is desperately seeking some legitimacy, a lack of which means its existence is in question.

The EU already possesses its own anthem, flag, citizenship, army, currency etc. and a whole host of quasi-federal institutions.

The most fervent supporters of Europe will feel an unexpected surge of anxiety when reading Mr Maaten’s report, which describes a state of almost total unpreparedness, the limited, even non-existent, use of the euro in international transactions, including between the countries within Europe, the doubt surrounding the possibility that the banks will exchange citizens’ coins free of charge, the absurd charges for cross-border transactions, even though they are made using the same currency and the excessive price increases that the currency changeover is bound to provoke.

The second point is the almost total absence of any reference to the euro. This famous single currency which, it was said, would bring us a prosperous future and be snapped up by the whole world eager for competition with the US dollar, has been cold-shouldered, not only by investors who are investing in dollars in the USA, but also by the central banks.

Today, we live in a situation which is post Berlin wall, post Kohl, post Mitterand, post single currency, post initiation of enlargement, and pre-hardly anything.

The present time appears to be one of high risk to financial institutions, as witnessed by the current international currency volatility and the more frequent failures or near-failures of major banks associated with the use of new financial instruments, such as hedge funds.