Euro group
chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem has criticized European Commission President
Jean-Claude Juncker for his attitude towards the Stability Pact. He called on
Juncker not to turn a blind eye to France's budget deficit.
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| Jeroen Dijsselbloem and Jean-Claude Juncker |
Euro group
chief and Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem (pictured above, left)
warned on Friday against a lax interpretation of the European Stability Pact
and too much indulgence with "deficit sinners."
In an
interview published in German newspaper "Süddeutsche Zeitung" and six
other European broadsheets, Dijsselbloem said it would "be wise" for
the European Commission "to pay a little more attention to their
credibility."
The set of
EU rules known as the Stability and Growth Pact came about in 1998 in order to
strengthen the monitoring of member states' budgets.
"We
member states need an objective arbitrator who upholds the pact," the
Dutch finance minister said. He also complained of politicizing budgetary
decisions.
In Spain,
the Commission recently postponed a decision on stepping up action againts the
country's excessive deficit until after parliamentary elections, which are
scheduled to take place at the end of June.
Exceptions
for Paris
Dijsselbloem's
statements on Friday focused in particular on comments made by Juncker earlier
this week when he was asked to justify why France had repeatedly been granted
exceptions from the Stability Pact.
"Because
it is France," Juncker replied.
Since the
global financial crisis struck in 2008, France has failed to bring its public deficit back under the 3-percent threshold, as stipulated by the Stability
Pact.
Following
the Paris terrorist attacks last year, Juncker said France should receive
special deficit rule treatment after boosting its security expenses. Thanks to
a deferral, granted by Brussels at the beginning of 2016, Paris now has until
next year to meet the required budget deficit.
Damaged
credibility
Dijsselbloem
criticized Juncker's stance, warning that if the Commission continues to turn a
blind eye time after time, then the euro group would be left with a "blind
monetary union."
"If
[Juncker] says that things are different for France, then that really damages
the credibility of the Commission as guardian of the pact - and that's my concern,"
Dijsselbloem said.
The Euro
group chief called on the EU Commission to maintain and protect the rules of
the Pact, "regardless of the size of a member state or of whether
elections are being held."
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