Brussels, 24/06/2009 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 24 June, the European Commission formally opened the excessive deficit proceedings for 2008 (more than 3% GDP) against four member states. It has recommended that the Ecofin Council's July meeting note the existence of an excessive deficit (article 104, paragraphs 5 and 6 of the Treaty) and propose a timescale for this to be corrected (article 104, paragraph 7) for Lithuania, Malta, Poland and Romania. In reports adopted on the basis of...