Germany’s Constitutional Court has said it thinks the European Central Bank’s bond-buying plan exceeds the ECB’s mandate and violates a ban on it funding governments.<br /><br />But the court is not going to block it and instead is referring the case to the European Court of Justice.<br /><br />In September 2012 the ECB promised potentially unlimited purchases of eurozone government bonds.<br /><br />It has never done that, but the move was widely credited with stabilising the euro at the height of the sovereign debt crisis.<br /><br />It calmed fears about the eurozone falling apart and backed up ECB President Mario Draghi’s vow to do “whatever it takes” to save the euro.<br /><br />Germany’s Bundesbank is opposed to the plan which is why the country’s Constitutional Court was asked to consider whether it conforms with German law.<br /><br />A decision from the European Court of Justice could take up to two years and legal experts said the ECJ is more likely to rule in the ECB’s favour. <br /><br />“Practically speaking, the Court of Justice is not an independent organisation but is pre-disposed to interpret legal questions in the interest of the European Union,” University of London European Law expert Gunnar Beck said.<br /><br />“The court of justice doesn’t take account of national sensibilities … there is no doubt of the outcome now.”
