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The EU member states and the European Parliament have reached an agreement on the new budget rules. This was reported by the Belgian EU presidency. The revision of European fiscal rules should offer EU countries a more tailor-made path to reducing the debt ratio.
In principle, the rule in the EU is that the maximum debt ratio may not exceed the threshold of 60 percent, and the GDP deficit may not exceed 3 percent. However, critics found these rules too complex and strict, so the European member states came up with some adjustments after months of negotiations.
Countries that record a larger deficit than the 3 percent rule will have to make an annual effort of 0.5 percentage points. The requirements will be higher for countries with a higher debt burden.
The European Parliament and the 27 EU member states still have to formally give the green light.