BBC Learning English
Words in the News
3rd September 2010
Europe agrees to new financial regulator
The European Union has agreed to set up a series of financial regulators from the beginning
of 2011. The new regulators will monitor banks, insurance companies and trading on the
financial markets. Our Europe correspondent Jonty Bloom reports from Brussels:
The European Commission is keen to point out that this agreement will create a new EU-wide
system of financial watchdogs which will complement the work of the existing national
regulatory bodies, not replace them.
But this is still a controversial move as it creates a system of EU-wide financial regulation
especially over bodies such as credit rating agencies that can affect the whole European
economy. And in an emergency the proposals will allow these new financial regulators to
ban risky financial investments altogether and require national regulators to take joint co-
ordinated action.
Such powers will be controversial especially in the UK and Germany, which are worried that
a new EU-wide system will undermine their own national regulators and threaten the
success of financial centres like London and Frankfurt.
Jonty Bloom, BBC News, London
Words in the News © British Broadcasting Corporation 2010
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Vocabulary and definitions
watchdogs organisations that monitor the behaviour of companies to
check that they are not acting illegally
complement enhance or improve
regulatory bodies official organisations that enforce the rules (in this case for
financial matters)
controversial something that causes disagreement
credit rating agencies companies that calculate someone's ability to repay debt
proposals suggested plans
risky questionable or unsound
co-ordinated action when something is decided between two or more parties
and carried out together
undermine weaken
threaten put in danger
More on this story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11171800
Read and listen to the story and the vocabulary online:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/wordsinthenews/2010/09/100903_witn_eu_financial_regulator_page.shtml
Words in the News © British Broadcasting Corporation 2010
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