«It is obvious that the current debt reduction rule is unrealistic, we need a different one, perhaps different from country to country. The fact that it is more realistic must mean that it is more respected ». This was stated by Paolo Gentiloni, European commissioner for economic affairs at ‘In half an hour more’ on Rai Tre, according to whom «until now we had somewhat unrealistic and almost never respected rules. The reputation damage of the country in the financial markets worked. If the rules are more realistic, it is also good for the European Commission. Because, that my successor spends his life “navigating” the unrealistic European rules, it is not a good thing “.
According to the former prime minister, “we must build consensus on changing the budget rules we must not continue to follow the logic of ‘southern spenders and frugal Northerners’, that is a zero-sum game, you can’t get out of it”.
Debt, he adds, “must be reduced because the idea that a country can accumulate debt regardless cannot be accepted, but debt reduction must not kill growth and therefore must be realistic and gradual.”
The European Commission “is working to put on the table a proposal to reform these rules, I think we will be ready in late spring. Certainly the meeting that Macron has promoted for March 10 will shape the scene a bit. An important point of change – concludes Gentiloni – is to say enough with the North-South opposition, we start from the needs we have, that is, of an enormous amount of investments for the climate transition and the competitiveness of the European Union because we risk being left behind with the Americans. and Chinese. These huge investments must be accompanied by a debt reduction that is not unrealistic ».