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Public Debt and the Future of the EU's Stability and Growth Pact

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  • Wenzel, Heinz-Dieter
  • Lackenbauer, Jörg
  • Brösamle, Klaus J.

Abstract

Monetary policy and fiscal policy are connected in various ways. This is why the adoption of the Euro as a common European currency has been accompanied by the setup of the European Union's Stability and Growth Pact, a framework for the coordination of the EU countries' fiscal policies. In this paper, we provide a short overview of the SGP's history of origins and the degree to which the EU Member States adhered to it. Further, we analyse what effects public debt and public deficits have and whether, after all, public debt should be limited in one way or the other. Along these lines, the case for budgetary policy coordination in the special context of the Economic and Monetary Union is presented. After looking at the current SGP framework, we shed light on its main shortcomings and present various reform proposals, all of which are critically questioned. Finally, we present a case for a more flexible country-by-country approach to the interpretation of the deficit criterion (based on some simple algebra).

Suggested Citation

  • Wenzel, Heinz-Dieter & Lackenbauer, Jörg & Brösamle, Klaus J., 2004. "Public Debt and the Future of the EU's Stability and Growth Pact," BERG Working Paper Series 50, Bamberg University, Bamberg Economic Research Group.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:bamber:50
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Meyer, Dietmar & Shera, Adela, 2015. "Remittances' impact on the labor supply and on the deficit of current account," BERG Working Paper Series 97, Bamberg University, Bamberg Economic Research Group.
    2. Schmitt, Noemi & Tuinstra, Jan & Westerhoff, Frank, 2017. "Side effects of nonlinear profit taxes in an evolutionary market entry model: Abrupt changes, coexisting attractors and hysteresis problems," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 15-38.
    3. Proaño, Christian R. & Lojak, Benjamin, 2015. "Debt stabilization and macroeconomic volatility in monetary unions under heterogeneous sovereign risk perceptions," BERG Working Paper Series 106, Bamberg University, Bamberg Economic Research Group.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Stability and Growth Pact (SGP); public debt; public deficits; fiscal policy; policy coordination; Maastricht criteria;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H87 - Public Economics - - Miscellaneous Issues - - - International Fiscal Issues; International Public Goods
    • E61 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Policy Objectives; Policy Designs and Consistency; Policy Coordination
    • D62 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Externalities
    • H6 - Public Economics - - National Budget, Deficit, and Debt
    • E62 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Fiscal Policy; Modern Monetary Theory

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