In a press conference after the EU Summit held on Monday, Mario Monti, Italian prime Minister, told journalists that the measures taken by the Italian government will not deepen the possible recession that threatens Italy.
Speaking at a press conference, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said that the Spanish government will propose a labour market reform, as trade unions and companies failed to reach an agreement. "I know many people doesn't like our decisions", he said.
Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Liberals & Democrats Group at the European Parliament on Monday said that the new treaty is not enough to solve the crisis. The Belgian MEP said Europe needs to show 'solidarity' by lowering interest rates. 'The best way to rescue the euro is through creating a eurobond market', he said.
Rebecca Harms, Co Chair of the Greens/EFA Group for Germany, on Monday told journalists that Europe does not need a new treaty to achieve stability. 'This new treaty postpones real crisis management', she said. She highlighted the need of finding real solutions to solve the recession some member states are going through.
European Central Bank President Mario Draghi on Monday evening welcomed the agreement reached among leaders of 25 of the European Union member states on more stringent rules for government budgets of eurozone countries, saying he expect the agreement will support the euro.
EU leaders are meeting in Brussels on Monday (30 January) to agree on the final wording of a new treaty launched in December to tighten fiscal discipline in the euro zone. The informal summit will also focus heavily on jobs and growth with heads of state and governments paying special attention to youth unemployment and how to make better use of unspent EU regional funds to support the economy.
Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council, opens the 30 Jan. EU summit in Brussels. This video, 2 minutes and 18 seconds, was made available by the European Council. The council did not make available the remainder of this meeting between heads of state and government of the EU member states.
President of the Eurogroup Jean-Claude Juncker on Monday told journalists that UK's Prime Minister David Cameron is welcomed at the European Council meetings. 'Britain belongs to Europe, there's no doubt about that', Juncker said.
Jyrki Katainen, Prime Minister of Finland, on Monday told journalists at the European Council that he is "optimistic" EU leaders will reach an agreement on the new treaty. Speaking about Greece, Katainen also added that he sees as "natural" that many member states need more information on Greece's performance before they get a second bail-out.
David Cameron, UK's Prime Minister, on Monday told journalists waiting outside the European Council that European leadership need to get "really serious" about the growth agenda in Europe. He also highlighted the "serious effort" he hopes leaders will make at "deregulation" for small businesses.
Arriving at Monday's European Summit in Brussels, Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt underlined the need to be effective with plans to create new jobs and to boost economic growth.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy met President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso ahead of the European Council Summit taking place on Monday in Brussels. The Spanish Premier discussed with Barroso the new economic policies he plans to implement, which includes a draft legislation on labour market reforms that will be introduced in February.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Monday told journalists that the Netherlands are a good example to follow by other countries when it comes to cutting budget deficits while reforming its economy at the same time.
![Monti: \](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/7qnIrvec0T0/2.jpg "Monti: \")
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![Europe needs to get \](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/iSMklK-9le8/2.jpg "Europe needs to get \")
