Slovakia is not among the 12 EU countries that the European Commission will bring under its scrutiny due to a risk of internal economic imbalances, said Prime Minister Iveta Radičová at a session of the Slovak parliament’s European affairs committee on February 27, as reported by the TASR newswire.
"[Slovakia's] commitments stated in the National Reform Programme have been described as met or partially met. We're also meeting the criteria concerning the deficit and debt," the prime minister stated, as quoted by TASR.
The prime minister added that in 2011 Slovakia had reduced its deficit by more than pledged – to 4.6 percent of GDP instead of the originally projected 4.9 percent and that Slovakia's public debt is the eighth-lowest in the EU.
She also stated that the country had carried out three out of six reforms that it had pledged: making the Labour Code more flexible; adopting a constitutional law on budgetary responsibility; and measures against corruption.
"Three reforms weren't completed – reforms of the first pension pillar and the tax and payroll levy system, and a reduction in the administrative burden," Radičová stated, adding that this was due to the fall of the government in October.
The European Commission will carry out audits in the following countries: France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden. The stricter macroeconomic supervision stems from the modified Growth and Stability Pact which is designed to prevent high-risk practices like those seen in the recent real-estate bubbles in Spain and Ireland, TASR reported.
Source: TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
