The European Council and the EU Council of Ministers adopted a decision, on 19 December, appointing Benoît Coeuré, deputy director-general of the French Treasury, to the Executive Board of the European Central Bank for a term of eight years as from 1 January 2012. He will succeed Lorenzo Bini Smaghi (Italy), who has announced his resignation. The Governing Council is composed of the six members of the Executive Board and the governors of the national central banks of the member states of the eurozone.