Out now: Manual on Government Deficit and Debt

On 1 February 2023, Eurostat published the 10th edition of the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt — Implementation of ESA 2010. 

The Manual, first published in 1999, provides guidance on the appropriate statistical recording of specific government operations as well clarifications on the issues raised in the European Union regarding government finance statistics. It is an indispensable complement to European System of Accounts (ESA 2010) and an important tool for statisticians and specialists dealing with public finance issues. It also helps to better understand the methodology applied to government finance data and the compilation of the Statistics used for the Excessive Deficit Procedure that  obliges EU Member States to comply with budgetary discipline by respecting two criteria: a deficit-to-GDP ratio and a debt-to-GDP ratio not exceeding the reference values of 3% and 60% respectively. 

The current edition of the Manual includes new sections and chapters that deal with the statistical recording of the most recent national and supranational initiatives and measures, including those implemented to combat consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, securitisation of non-performing bank loans with government guarantees and of loans not expected to be fully repaid, capital injections into foreign direct investment, and the statistical recording of the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) operations. The Manual also provided further clarifications and more detailed guidance in several existing chapters. 

As was the case for all previous editions, the current edition is the result of collective work of Eurostat and  experts representing EU Member States and  international institutions.