BRUSSELS (AFP)–The head of the Eurogroup of euro-zone finance ministers ruled out on Sunday a rapid relaxation of tough criteria euro candidate countries must meet to join the bloc.

BRUSSELS -(Dow Jones)- The European Union’s financial sector needs more transparency to try to end worries over further losses, Finland’s Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen said Sunday.

BRUSSELS -(Dow Jones)- Eastern Europe should not be treated differently from the rest of Europe, Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek said Sunday.

LONDON -(Dow Jones)- The Bank of England will have to raise its key interest rate before it is obvious to consumers and investors that the economy has fully emerged from the recession, a former deputy governor at the central bank said.

BRUSSELS -(Dow Jones)- Europe should downsize its car manufacturing capacity and use state subsidies to encourage the production of more environmentally friendly cars, Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said Sunday.

BRUSSELS (Dow Jones)–Members of the European Union should help each other weather the global financial crisis while sticking to the bloc’s rules, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Sunday.

BRUSSELS (Dow Jones)–Ensuring that goods and services can flow freely throughout the European Union is the best way of reviving economic growth, European Union leaders will say in a document to be released later Sunday.

BRUSSELS -(Dow Jones)- Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said Sunday he is against separate treatment for groups of countries within the European Union.

BRUSSELS (Dow Jones)–Members of the European Union should help each other weather the global financial crisis while sticking to the bloc’s rules, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Sunday.

FRANKFURT -(Dow Jones)- There will be a meeting among high-ranking officials to discuss the fate of the country’s Landesbanken in Berlin on Monday, but no decisions are likely to be taken, a person close to one of the state governments told Dow Jones Newswires Sunday.