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| Juncker reveals giant EU investment plan | Juncker reveals giant EU investment plan |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has given details of a €315bn (£250bn;$393bn) investment plan to kick-start Europe's economy. | |
| At the heart of his five-year agenda is a €21bn European Fund for Strategic Investment aimed at stimulating growth and jobs. | At the heart of his five-year agenda is a €21bn European Fund for Strategic Investment aimed at stimulating growth and jobs. |
| Mr Juncker says it would be used as "seed money", to entice private backers to invest up to 15 times the sum. | Mr Juncker says it would be used as "seed money", to entice private backers to invest up to 15 times the sum. |
| It would take the burden off national governments, already facing big debts. | It would take the burden off national governments, already facing big debts. |
| "Europe needs a kick-start and today the Commission is providing the jump leads," he told the European Parliament in Strasbourg. | |
| Critics have already suggested that the scheme is too small, and needs far more hard cash if it is to make a major difference, the BBC's Damian Grammaticas in Brussels reports. | |
| However, Mr Juncker said Europe had to face "the challenge of a generation" head-on, without a money-printing machine, describing his plan as the greatest effort in recent EU history to trigger additional investment without changing the rules. | |
| Illustrating the type of projects he had in mind, Mr Juncker said he had a vision of | |
| Mr Juncker's speech came a day after Pope Francis addressed the same parliament, criticising an "elderly and haggard" Europe that had become less and less protagonist. | |
| Initial reaction came from Chancellor Angela Merkel, who told the German parliament that her government supported the package in principle, but it had to be clear to everyone where the projects were in the future. | |
| The Commission president, who came to office at the start of November, said he could not promise how much investment would go to each country, but he argued that investment in one country could only be good for growth in another. | |
| Structural reforms were necessary to modernise Europe's economy and fiscal responsibility was needed to restore confidence in public finance, but now investment had to be boosted as well, he said. | |
| The start of the former Luxembourg prime minister's term as president has been overshadowed by his country's role in a tax break row. | |
| Hundreds of multi-national firms were reportedly attracted to Luxembourg in legal tax avoidance schemes. Mr Juncker was prime minister at the time but denies wrongdoing. | |
| Although a vote against him is due to take place at the European Parliament on Thursday, it is unlikely to attract widespread support. |