This site has been archived on 27/01/17
27/01/17

Navigation path

The website of the Directorate General for Economic and Financial Affairs has moved.

You will find all publications issued after July 2015 on the new web presence.

Public finances in EMU - 2008

Author(s):

Public finances in EMU - 2008 pdf (3 MB) Choose translations of the previous link 

Major challenges for quality of public finances ahead

The European Commission on 25 June 2008 adopted a Communication COM(2008)387 final on "The role of quality of public finances in the EU governance framework" and released its annual staff report on Public Finances in EMU.

Even though the budgetary situation improved markedly in 2007, there is no room for complacency on fiscal policies. A number of challenges are ahead which need to be tackled so as to ensure sustainability of public finances, to foster long-term economic growth and the smooth functioning of EMU. This is the basic message of a Communication adopted by the Commission on 25 June.

The analysis in the underpinning staff report reveals that Member States have significant scope to enhance the quality of public finances. A comprehensive fiscal policy approach that raises the quality of public finances is called for. Policy action can be more growth-friendly and competitiveness-enhancing through measures that help raise the efficiency of expenditure and revenue systems.
  • First, sound overall public finances remain the linchpin of fiscal policy-making conducive to economic growth. High-debt countries are have significantly lower medium-term growth and capital accumulation plays a less significant role for GDP growth due to crowding-out effects.
  • Second, when public administrations become too large they tend to hinder economic growth in particular if they are associated with high tax burdens on labour and capital and inefficient use of public resources.
  • Third, whether certain types of public expenditure are growth-enhancing largely depends on their ability to address market failures and provide public goods.
  • Fourth, revenue structures that limit distortions and disincentives are typically associated with higher growth. And finally, achieving results on all of the above fronts of QPF can be facilitated by strong fiscal governance frameworks.
To strengthen the focus on the quality of public finances in national budgetary policies, the Commission Communication today identified a number of areas for action which build on the 2005 SGP reform and the May 2008 Commission Communication on EMU@10. These key areas for action are:

  • More systematic and comprehensive reporting;
  • Inclusion of performance information in budgetary procedures;
  • Enhancing the efficiency of tax systems;
  • Establishing a regular review of the quality of public finances.

(European Economy 4. July 2008. Tab. Graph. Ann. Bibliogr. )

Additional tools

  • Print version 
  • Decrease text 
  • Increase text