This move by the EU Council follows a written vote by member state ambassadors on Friday.
The countries targeted by the procedure will have four to seven years to implement corrective measures.
The European Commission on June 19 proposed initiating the EDP for Poland, France, Italy, Belgium, Hungary, Malta and Slovakia, citing their lack of sufficient corrective actions.
In addition, the Council determined that Romania, already under the EDP since 2020, has not taken effective steps to reduce its deficit. As a result, Romania’s EDP will remain open.
The EDP is triggered when a member state's public-sector deficit exceeds 3 percent of its gross domestic product or if public debt surpasses 60 percent of GDP.
The procedure aims to ensure that all EU member states maintain budgetary discipline and avoid excessive deficits, ultimately seeking to keep public debt low or bring high debt levels to a sustainable threshold.
Historically, the European Commission has provided immediate recommendations for corrective actions when initiating the EDP. This year, however, the recommendations will be issued in November.
The delay is intended to align these recommendations with the new medium-term national fiscal plans, introduced as part of recent fiscal rule reforms. These plans require countries to outline strategies to manage their finances effectively.
EU countries have until October 15 to prepare their medium-term plans. These plans can be developed after the Commission provided fiscal trajectories on June 21, guiding how countries can reduce their deficits within the four- or seven-year timeframe.
In November, a significant fiscal review will occur. The Commission will release its recommendations for the countries under the EDP, initially approve the medium-term plans, and issue opinions on the 2025 budgetary plans for eurozone countries.
Poland has previously been under the EDP twice, from 2004 to 2008 and from 2009 to 2015.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP
