Bulgaria Signs EU Fiscal Treaty
Bulgarian Prime Minister Boiko Borisov alongside his counterparts from all but two other European Union member states, signed an EU treaty on fiscal discipline.
"Twenty-five European leaders today signed the Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance aimed at strengthening fiscal discipline and introducing stricter surveillance within the euro area, in particular by establishing a "balanced budget rule", the European Commission said on Friday in a statement published on its website following a European Council meeting in Brussels.
The countries that have ratified the pact should incorporate into their national legal systems a requirement for their national budgets to be in balance or in surplus, a criterion that would be met if the annual structural government deficit does not exceed 0.5% of GDP at market prices, the Commission said. If a country breaches the budget deficit rules, an automatic correction mechanism will be triggered.
In compliance with a resolution by the Bulgarian Parliament, Bulgaria will join the compact but will not apply prior to its accession to the euro zone Title 4 of the document which envisages strengthening the economic policy coordination and convergence, the government's press office said.