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ECOFIN: 21 January 2020

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

A meeting of the Economic and Financial Affairs (ECOFIN) Council was held in Brussels on 21 January 2020. The Council discussed the following:

Early Morning Session

The Eurogroup President briefed the Council on the outcomes of the 20 January meeting of the Eurogroup, and the European Commission provided an update on the current economic situation in the EU. Following this, ministers took stock of the process of nominating a European candidate for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Presidency.

Current Financial Services Legislative Proposals

The Croatian Presidency provided an update on current legislative proposals in the field of financial services.

Presidency Work Programme

The Croatian Presidency presented its work programme for January to June 2020.

European Green Deal

The European Commission presented the economic and financial aspects of the European Green Deal.

European Semester 2020

To launch the new European Semester exercise, the European Commission presented the Annual Sustainable Growth Strategy, the Alert Mechanism Report, and the Euro area recommendation.

Tax Challenges Arising from Digitalisation

The Council held an exchange of views on the state of play of negotiations in the OECD on tax challenges arising from digitalisation.