In attendance:
R. Collasse (EBC Chairman)
A. Murray (EBC Executive Director)
C. Sedgman (EBC Policy Director)
M. Reiterer (Minister, EC Delegation)
H. DeMestier (President, CCIFJ)
M. Lachaussee (EOB for CCIFJ)
H. Mueller (President, ABC)
C. Ochsner (President, SCCIJ)
J. DeWit (President, NCCJ)
A. Mankiewicz (Vice-President,BCCJ)
S. Economou (Embassy of Greece)
E. Gimenez-Burgos (Embassy of Spain)
S. Lorenz (DIHKJ)
T. Kullberg (Outgoing President, SCCJ)
C. Halling (Incoming President, SCCJ)
M. Makinen (President, FCCJ)
1. Comments
from EC Delegation
1) M.Reiterer noted some progress had been made at the
EU Japan Regulatory Reform dialogue held November 11, 2004, but for many
issues, there is still no movement. Issues discussed include: airline
travel sales and distribution, financial services (post office, fire
walls, etc.), tax deferral on cross border stock swaps, food additives,
human resources (pension refunds for departing executives), etc. A more
detailed report from the Delegation will follow.
2. Report
from the EBC Chairman
1) Mini Government door knock (Nov 8) - R.
Collasse, C. Sedgman, Ambassador Zepter and P. Duponteil, Head of the EC
Delegation's trade section, visited METI (Vice Minister Kosaka), MOFA
(Deputy Minister Fujisaki), and the Cabinet Office (Chief Cabinet
Secretary Hosoda) to deliver an "advanced copy" of the EBC White
Paper
2) JIC Meeting and Investment Group Lunch (Nov 15) -
R. Collasse to give a presentation on the 2004 White Paper at the Japan
Investment Council meeting. This will be R. Collasse's first presentation
as a full member of the JIC. Immediately following this meeting,
R.Collasse will participate in the regular informal Investment Group Lunch
with officials of the Japanese Government.
3) Other items -
- Debbie Howard, President of the ACCJ, has suggested
that the EBC and ACCJ collaborate on the yearly "Diet Doorknock"
operations at the end of the year. The ACCJ visits nearly 70 Diet
members in this annual activity.
- The EBC EOB took Ambassador Zepter and his trade team
out for lunch on Nov. 9 in appreciation of the Delegation's support;
e.g. use of Europa House meeting rooms
3. Report
from the Executive Director
1) White paper launch - A. Murray noted that over
200 people were in attendance at the White Paper launch held Nov.10 at the
Westin Hotel in Ebisu. Thanks were extended to the chambers (BCCJ, CCIFJ,
DIHJK) for volunteering "helpers" to work at the front desk as
well as all of the sponsors who made the production and launch of the
White Paper possible. Early press clipping distributed separately. Many
respondents noted the quality of the event, including the new venue, which
was obtained for the same price as the previous venue (Keidanren).
2) Result of meeting with Eucomed Director-General
(October 20) - Eucomed (association of European medical device
manufacturers and associations) visited the EBC to explore ways for
further collaboration. Some interest was expressed from Eucomed on
becoming a member or a "sponsor" of the EBC, and A.Murray will
follow-up with some suggestions concerning payments/deliverables, etc. In
return, the EBC Medical Equipment Committee is interested in using Eucomed
for information on the current situation in Europe in its negotiations
with the Japanese Government.
3) Meeting with PlanetFinance (November 5) -
PlanetFinance is an NGO sponsored by the EC and World Bank (amongst
others) involved in micro-finance initiatives throughout the world. They
are interested in setting up a base in Japan, and in exploring ways in
which they could use the resources of the EBC for "outreach".
Interest was expressed in sub-letting part of the EBC office. A. Murray to
follow-up, with the proviso that EWI may continue its present sub-letting
arrangement with priority over PlanetFinance if sufficient advance notice
is given before the end of the year.
4) Telecom fundraising - A. Murray noted the
importance of promoting Ultracall's promotion scheme, as up to 10% of
sales come back to the EBC. Sakamoto-san of Ultracall is willing to tailor
packages to meet the needs of individual companies. A. Murray to send out
another outreach to members shortly.
5) 2005 EBC Committee Membership Fee Collection -
Chambers were reminded that EBC Committee membership fees will be
collected by the EBC Secretariat. Confirmation of chamber membership
status will continue as before, and lists will be provided to the chambers
after confirmation from EBC members has been received that they will
continue committee participation in 2005.
4. Report
from the Policy Director
1) Report on Committee News and cross-sector policy
items from policy director - C. Sedgman reported that current lobbying
activities include: pre-paid phones, unregulated kyosai, leather shoes,
and protection of personal information.
5. Constitution Vote
1) Final result - Distributed separately. The EBC
Constitution was formally endorsed and copies will be presented to the EBC
Council at the final meeting of the year (Dec.15). Effective date will be
Jan.1, 2005. Information on logistics concerning the election of committee
"Vice-Chairmen" to follow later. The secretariat will contact
Committee Chairmen soon to start the process of electing three committee
chairmen for membership of the Council.
6.
Organizational matters
1) Final result of Chairman reaffirmation -
Provided separately. R. Collasse was confirmed as Chairman of the EBC for
the year 2005. New rules for the election of Chairman will take effect
from Jan.1, 2006.
7. 2005
Budget
1) Projected 2005 Budget - Papers were
distributed and discussed in the meeting. There was no dissent among those
present at the meeting, but the three relevant papers ("History of
EBC Revenue," "History of EBC Revenue and Expenses," and
"EBC Predicted Budget for 2005") will be distributed by e-mail
and formal approval obtained at the next Council Meeting on December15.
8. Taskforce
update
1) Update on last meeting and action plan activity -
R. Collasse noted that taskforce meetings are ongoing and various formulae
have been suggested concerning the chamber subsidies for next year and the
following years. The basic working assumption is that the collective
amount of chamber subsidies will not drop below the current level, and
that any new "formula" will be phased in over a period of three
years. It is hoped that a concrete suggestion concerning chamber subsidies
can be presented at the next Council meeting on December15 although
further discussion is expected before and after that meeting.
2) Next meeting - the taskforce will next meet on
December 13.
9. Other
business
1) Other business - R. Collasse was interviewed
by Bloomberg TV concerning the rise in the Euro. A copy will be made
available at the EBC office for those who are interested.
2) Reminder about December 15 meeting and December 15
cocktail party - Participants were reminded about the year-end Council
meeting on December 15 and the cocktail party to follow the same day in
the evening at the new Chanel building in the Ginza.
EBC
Meeting Minutes