Luxembourg’s Jean-Claude Juncker, who leads the group of euro-area finance ministers, said the 17 euro-region countries may succeed in imposing a tax on financial transactions.

“I would of course like that such a financial transaction tax would be introduced worldwide,” Juncker said today on Luxembourg DNR radio. “But we haven’t managed to do that.”

“Then I’d like this to happen at the level of the 27 EU countries, but we haven’t managed to do that, either,” he said. “Then I’d like to introduce this at the level of the 17 euro countries, which we will maybe manage to do. And if it’s not a financial transaction tax, then another form of financial responsibility for the financial sector.”

Europe can’t refrain from “the justice that needs to be delivered” out of consideration for London’s financial industry, he said.