French refusal to cut budget deficit is new blow to Stability and Growth Pact

EU news & policy debates
- across languages -

Click here for EU news »

Friday 24 May 2013

BROWSE ALL SECTIONS

NEWS
Europe takes aim at digital giants’ tax swerves
Multinational technology companies such as Apple, Google and Amazon were a key focus of EU leaders' attempt to clamp down on aggressive tax avoidance at their summit on Wednesday (22 May).

News | Anti-racism bill puts Greek coalition to the test
News | Brussels pushes to open talks for EU-China investment accord
News | Bankers call for quick action on banking union
News | 89 scientists join call for EU action on hormone-disrupting chemicals
News | Bosnia’s human rights record hinders EU talks
Hot topics
>> more
SPECIAL REPORTS
Special Reports
>> more
LINKSDOSSIERS

Fighting alcohol harm: The EU's strategy under review
Europeans have the highest per-capita consumption of alcohol, and drinking causes nearly 1-in-10 cases of ill health and premature death. The European Commission’s informal alcohol strategy, launched in 2006, is set for a detailed evaluation in 2013, with the policy objective of reducing the health and social harm caused by excessive alcohol consumption.

LinksDossier | Agenda for Change: EU’s helping hand gets an overhaul
LinksDossier | Italian elections 2013: A nation at a crossroads [Archived]
LinksDossier | Euroscepticism: More than a British phenomenon
LinksDossier | Cloud computing: Leveraging the digital economy
LinksDossier | Cybersecurity: Protecting the digital economy
INTERVIEWS

American obesity expert: What the EU can learn from the US
The United States is often ahead of Europe when it comes to the newest technology but also unhealthy lifestyles. Therefore, the EU could look to the US for solutions on how to deal with obesity, says James O. Hill.

Interview | Friedbert Pflüger: Climate change is no longer the EU’s only priority
Interview | Intel exec: Europe must invest to remain competitive
Interview | Tajani: Europe can reach 20% industry target
Interview | Gas industry chief: We cannot wait for a more ambitious energy policy
Interview | UNESCO envoy: Cultural action is key for Mali’s reconstruction
OPINIONS

Why EU leaders defeated BusinessEurope on energy
Despite deploying lobbyists and spending several hundred thousands of euros to derail Europe's energy and climate policy ahead of this week's Summit, BusinessEurope – the employers' umbrella organisation - did not succeed in integrating their campaign into the Summit's conclusions, writes Claude Turmes.

Opinion | Wishful thinking will not make European energy affordable
Opinion | Domestic violence begins at home, combating it begins in Europe
Opinion | Time to shake off the gloom: Europe matters
Opinion | Germany's unfair practice in the field of energy intensive industries
Opinion | Soaring energy costs make Europeans poor
BLOGS

End of tax fraud
The Plenary Session in Strasbourg is being characterized by taxes, more precisely by the collection of taxes. It is estimated that the EU countries ar..

Blog | No Need for an Euro-zone Government à la Hollande
Blog | Inflation in Germany is not an automatic remedy for the periphery’s economic woes
Blog | China, the United States, and Greece: The race of mirrors
Blog | The Arab World should give priority to phasing out Subsidies on fossil Fuels
Blog | Under the Open Access Policy UNESCO Opens up its Publications Free of Charge
VIDEOS

Background:

The EU's finance ministers were faced on 8 October with a flat refusal by the French government to reduce its budget deficit by 0.5 per cent in 2003. Mr Mer, the French Finance Ministers, said that his country had other priorities such as boosting economic growth and raising military spending, and promised his colleagues that France will begin budget cuts only in 2004.

The French refusal could lead to an early warning by the Commission and will result in new pressures to relax the budgetary discipline rules (the Stability and Growth pact) in the 12 eurozone countries. On 24 September, the Commission already took a first step to a loosening of the rules of the Stability and Growth pact when it decided that EU Member States will have an additional two years to balance their budgets (see

EurActiv 25 September 2002)