Italy yesterday became the latest country in the eurozone to be ordered to bring its budget deficit in line with European rules or face punishment
Published:
1 May 2004 y., Saturday
The European commission issued its call to Silvio Berlusconi as unprecedented court proceedings began over whether EU member states can be forced to follow the stability and growth pact.
"I trust the early warning will be complied with by the Italian authorities," said the new commissioner for economic and monetary affairs, Joaquin Almunia. Mr Almunia has replaced his countryman Pedro Solbes, who is now back in Madrid as deputy prime minister and finance minister in the new socialist government.
The commission said Britain and the Netherlands had both breached the pact's limit of 3% of gross domestic product in 2003, but recommended no action since both were coming back into line. In Britain, any excess was likely to be "small and temporary", it said. The UK is subject to the same review mechanism despite being outside the eurozone. British officials said the UK had been merely "stroked across the knuckles".
Italy, the eurozone's third largest economy, was castigated for "significant slippage" in its projected 2004 deficit, now seen as hitting 3.2% of GDP. Its budget would have to be slashed by nearly €7bn in 2005 to check this.
The Brussels rebuke was rejected by Rocco Buttiglione, Italy's European affairs minister. "Probably a friendly approach would have had a more certain and efficient impact," he said, suggesting that Romano Prodi, the commission president, was biased. Mr Prodi is expected to challenge Mr Berlusconi in the next general election in Italy.
Šaltinis:
The Guardian
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
The financial and economic crisis has shown that reckless behaviour of banks and other financial institutions can have serious and costly consequences for Europe's economy and its people.
more »
Local services that create jobs and improve energy efficiency received a boost Thursday (2 September) when MEPs on the Industry, Research and Energy Committee approved plans for more investment.
more »
The European Commission approved the first financing decisions under the EUR 264 million 2010 allocation for the so-called Vulnerability FLEX mechanism to help the most vulnerable African, Caribbean and Pacific countries cope with the impact of the global financial crisis and economic downturn.
more »
The European Commission has today updated the list of airlines banned in the European Union to impose an operating ban on one air carrier from Ghana and to place operating restrictions on another air carrier from that country.
more »
The European Commission today approved an application from Denmark for assistance under the European Globalisation adjustment Fund (EGF).
more »
Algirdas Šemeta, EU Commissioner for Taxation, Customs Union, Anti-Fraud and Audit, will open tomorrow an international conference at the Shanghai World Expo 2010 on building bridges to facilitate trade between China and the EU.
more »
Moldova is set to receive an EU grant of up to €90 million to help it through the financial crisis, following a vote at Parliament's Committee on International Trade on Monday.
more »
Important notice: since May 2010 business surveys data are classified in accordance with an updated version of the Nomenclature of Economic Activities (NACE rev. 2) causing a potential break in series at this date.
more »
75% of Europeans think that stronger coordination of economic and financial policies among EU Member States would be effective in fighting the economic crisis, according to the Spring 2010 Eurobarometer, the bi-annual opinion poll organised by the EU.
more »
The European Commission has extended until the end of the year the liquidity support scheme for banks in Slovenia.
more »