27/01/17
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April is an important month in the European Semester cycle of economic and fiscal policy coordination when Member States present two sets of policy plans to the European Commission. One lays out how they intend to manage their public finances and the other details the structural reforms they are planning to boost growth and jobs.
The public finance management plans of euro area Member States are known as Stability Programmes, while those of Member States that do not use the common currency are known as Convergence Programmes.
The structural reform plans submitted by all Member States are known as National Reform Programmes. Both programmes are to be presented to the Commission by the end of April. The Commission analyses the two programmes sent by each country and then makes specific policy recommendations to each of them. Governments discuss these recommendations with the Commission and with each other and subsequently integrate them into their national policies with their parliaments.
The European Commission is expected to publish its opinion on the programmes in May.
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