Brussels, 16/02/2004 (Agence Europe) - Heads of governments from four EU Member States: Italy, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands and two EU accession countries (Poland and Estonia) have written a joint letter to the Irish presidency requesting that the rules of the Stability and Growth Pact are applied fairly. Spain and the Netherlands have been the most critical about the decision of the Ecofin Council on 25 November to suspend excessive deficit procedures against France and Germany. The authors say that, "the Stability and Growth Pact is an essential element for economic governance of our economic and monetary Union and a necessary condition for sustained economic growth that we all want". They also add that pact rules should be applied rationally and without discrimination. (See below on the Court of Justice's decision to deal with the Commission's appeal against the Ecofin Council's decision on 25 November by accelerated procedure).