Valdis Dombrowskis has the peace away. Although Italy's state budget threatens to violate the stability criteria of the European Union again, the country does not have to act immediately. "We do not say that it has to be done immediately," said the EU Commissioner in Brussels. It was only in the summer that the Commission recommended the initiation of an excessive deficit procedure against Italy.
Maybe it's because the state is now no longer the exception across Europe. Overall, according to the EU Commission, eight states are threatening to violate the provisions of the Euro Stability Pact next year.
Wobbly candidates Estonia and Latvia
For Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, Slovenia, Finland, Slovakia and Portugal, there is a heightened risk based on the budget drafts for 2020, the Brussels authorities said. The rest of the euro area is expected to meet the requirements - in the case of Estonia and Latvia, with restrictions.
The purpose of the pact is to keep the states' budgets in balance with the single currency in order to ensure the stability of the euro. An annual debt of no more than three percent and a total debt of 60 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) is allowed.
In the case of persistent violations, the EU Commission can initiate criminal proceedings, at the end of which finance ministers can theoretically impose billions of euros in fines. This has never happened in practice.
During the euro financial crisis, the deficits and debt levels, especially since 2010 in the euro countries had risen extremely. In recent years, the situation improved. As the last country, Spain was recently released from criminal proceedings in June for excessive new debt.