Brussels, 20/11/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 23 November, the finance ministers of the countries of the eurozone will agree their position on the draft national budgets 2016.
The ministers will base their assessment on the opinions presented by the European Commission on Tuesday 17 November. According to the European institution, none of the draft national budgets for 2016 risks seriously infringing the rules of the Stability and Growth Pact (see EUROPE 11432).
The German, Estonian, Luxembourg, Dutch and Slovakian draft budgets are considered to be compliant. Those of Belgium, Latvia, Malta and Finland are deemed “overall compliant”. The budgets of Italy, Lithuania and Greece, however, are felt to be “at risk of non-compliance”. Of the countries in the “corrective” plank of the Pact (nominal public deficit above 3% of GDP), the French, Irish and Slovenian budgets are “overall compliant”. France, which has to correct its excessive deficit by 2017, is expected to comply with the interim nominal objectives recommended for 2015 and 2016, but it is no longer certain that it will correct its deficit in the given time. For 2016, there is a potentially significant deviation risk for Slovenia. The opinion on the Spanish draft budget was already returned in October (see EUROPE 11408). Lastly, Portugal has still not submitted its budget plan for 2016.
On Tuesday 24 November, the European Commission will announce its annual growth review for 2016. This document, in which the European institution lists its socio-economic policy priorities for 2016, marks the start of the 2016 edition of the open European Semester budgetary process. (Original in French by Mathieu Bion)