---

ECOFIN: 23 January 2018

My right honourable friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer (Philip Hammond) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement.

A meeting of The Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) was held in Brussels on 23 January 2018. EU Finance Ministers discussed the following:

Early Morning Session

The Eurogroup President provided briefing to Ministers on the outcomes of the 22 January meeting of the Eurogroup, and the Commission provided an update on the current economic situation in the EU.

Deepening of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)

The Council held a policy debate on the deepening of the EMU.

Current Financial Services Legislative Proposals

The Presidency presented information on the current legislative proposals in the field of financial services.

VAT: Simplification of Rates and Simplification for SME’s

The Commission presented proposals to reform the rules on VAT rates and structures, and to simplify VAT obligations for SMEs.

Presidency Work Programme

The Bulgarian Presidency presented its work programme for January to June 2018.

European Semester 2018

The Council adopted the Council conclusions on the Annual Growth Survey 2018 and the Council conclusions on the Alert Mechanism Report 2018. The Council also approved a Council recommendation on the economic policy of the euro area.

Action Plan to Tackle Non-Performing Loans in Europe

The Council exchanged views on a factual report by the Commission regarding the implementation of the action plan to tackle non-performing loans in Europe.

AOB: EU List of Non-Cooperative Jurisdictions for Tax Purposes

The Council approved a report by the EU Code of Conduct Group (Business Taxation) to de-list 8 jurisdictions from the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes that was agreed at December 2017 ECOFIN.