-->Sagt zumindest der Vizepräsident der Bundesbank:

Reuters
Buba's Stark- can't use gold to pay for tax cuts
Tuesday July 8, 10:32 am ET


MUNICH, July 8 (Reuters) - Bundesbank Vice President Juergen Stark said on Tuesday that selling Bundesbank gold was not an option for the German government seeking to finance tax cuts.
"The use of gold reserves would lead to a monetary financing situation which is forbidden by the Maastricht Treaty," Stark told Reuters on the sidelines of a speech to a chemical industry association. The Treaty forbids central banks to underwrite government deficits.


"Such an operation would only distract from the real problem of the immense need for reform in Germany," he added.

Several political leaders in German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's Social Democrat Party urged the government earlier this week to sell gold and currency reserves to help finance plans to cut income taxes in 2004.

Rainer Wend, head of parliament's economic committee, and Hermann Scheer, a member of the SPD executive board, said in interviews to the newspaper Bild am Sonntag that selling assets such as gold and currency reserves could raise 35 billion euros.

Stark said politicians must stop making such suggestions.

"Politicians have no influence over how the Bundesbank proceeds with its gold reserves. All interference from the politicians' side must cease," Stark said.

The government has announced plans to bring forward by one year 15.5 billion euros ($17.48 billion) of tax cuts scheduled for 2005. It has said it wants to cover part of the resulting shortfall in revenues via subsidy cuts and privatisations, but admits neither is certain.

If left unfinanced, the tax cuts would push up federal borrowing to at least 30 billion euros next year, the finance ministry has said.

Germany's parliament currently has no debate scheduled on the using gold to finance tax reform. Parliament is now in recess until September 8.

The Bundesbank has about 3,500 tonnes of gold -- worth over 33 billion euros -- making it the world's second largest official holder of bullion after the United States.




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