In September 2012, the European Central Bank Governing Council adopted a decision on Technical Features of Outright Monetary Transactions (OMT).
According to the Court,[1] if the OMT decision is to qualify as an independent act of economic policy it violates the distribution of powers.
Rescue programmes, owing to ‘their significant financial scope and general political implications, belong to the core aspects of the Member States’ economic policy responsibilities.’ Without parliamentary approval, the OMT did away with national democratic process.
The OMT could be rescued, by restrictive interpretation, by (1) excluding any acceptance of a debt cut (2) not permitting purchase of an unlimited amount of bonds (3) avoiding interference with price formation on the market.
German participation in ESM had to be cleared by the Bundestag, but the ECB intervention was not subject to parliamentary approval.