Not really a ringing endorsement

Rather preposterously, Jacques Santer has got the job as head of the EU bailout fund. "He is someone with a name. He is close by and was available," or in other words 'he is unemployed and twiddling his thumbs',  is the best the EU could come up with to justify the appointment.

As UKIP's Farage pointed out,

The lunatics have finally taken over the asylum. The key to dealing with this crisis, as with any crisis in the markets is confidence. What sort of confidence can anybody have in somebody who was even the EU fired for incompetence.

The plain fact is that the name Santer is synonymous in the public mind with financial corruption. It is quite incredible that some-one of his reputation and past actions would be appointed head of an EU bailout fund.

It seems that even the Eurocrats agree with this assessment,

He was chosen because he is a "good European", a Luxembourger, who will take on the board role for the Luxembourg-based EFSF's SPIV without a salary.

"He is someone with a name. He is close by and was available," said an EFSF spokesman.

Defending the decision, Jean-Claude Juncker, who chairs the meetings of eurozone finance ministers, told reporters: "He (Santer) served both Europe and his country in the best way possible".

If Mr Junker thinks that presiding over a corrupt an incompetent Commission, leading to embarrassment and mass resignations is the 'best way possible' I am certain that watching the performance of the improbably named Special Purpose Investment Vehicle, or Spiv for short will be entertaining, if you are not one of millions who will suffer due to its depredations.