The latest economic and political developments in Europe are a wake-up call for our political leaders to take swifter action in order to strengthen the foundations of our Union, notably the fragile architecture of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), thus ensuring lasting stability and prosperity for the people of Europe. This can only happen if all Member States concerned, the European institutions and stakeholders cooperate actively and without delay in the process of deepening EMU that was formally launched last year with the Five Presidents' Report and welcomed by the European Council.
With all eyes turned to the March 2017 Summit on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome and the upcoming Commission White Paper on the future of EMU, we believe that now is the right time to open an in-depth discussion with officials, economic experts and civil society representatives on the various threats and opportunities related to the completion of EMU during stage 2 as outlined in the Five Presidents' Report. In this context, the European Economic and Social Committee is organising a public debate on "What future for the euro? Threats and opportunities for stage 2 of deepening EMU". The aim of this debate is to support the necessary consensus-building on an ambitious roadmap for completing EMU by 2025, as part of a global vision for the future of the European Union.