Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-09-15-Speech-3-153"
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"en.20040915.6.3-153"2
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"Mr President, with the Commission proposal, we are out of the frying pan and into the fire: more flexibility but without clear-cut criteria. In my view, the core of the Pact should remain intact, namely maximum 3% of GDP for budget shortage and 60% of GDP for public debt. If the Pact is to become more flexible, this should be done on the basis of objective and general criteria. This is where the proposal leaves a great deal to be desired.
The Commission should have more powerful means at its disposal to force Member States to adhere to the terms of the Pact. At the moment, the Council has too many fingers in the pie, which leads to a politicisation of the Stability Pact. The sanction mechanism in the present Stability Pact did not appear to be rock-hard or neutral: large Member States, on the basis of their position of power, were able to violate the rules and get away with it.
Although the present Pact does not conclusively specify that in times of economic prosperity its members have to work on building up a surplus, that is essential if the Stability Pact is to be successful. The creation of such a buffer, for example, with a view to an increase in the ageing population, is indispensable.
It is therefore to be welcomed that the Commission underlines the importance of such a buffer in the revised Pact. At the same time, with the 3% limit, in principle, the Pact offers Member States enough leeway to invigorate their economy in times of economic decline."@en1
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