Brussels issues opinions on budget plans but waits for Portugal
After having unveiled the autumn economic functions on November 11, the community executive is now adopting the second part of the “Autumn Package” for the European semester, which, in addition to the departments on budget projects for the next year, includes research for economic policy in the eurozone, the report on the social situation and employment and the report on macroeconomic imbalances.
Regarding the opinions on the budget projects, the Commission has already made it known that it does not comment on Portugal at this stage, as the proposed State Budget for 2022 (OE2022) was rejected by Parliament, which led to the dissolution of the parliament and conv. from advanced advances to January 30 of next year.
On November 9, at a meeting of EU Finance Ministries (Ecofin) in Brussels, Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis confirmed that the European Commission will wait for the future Portuguese Government to present a new requested plan for 2022 for issue its opinion, admitting having a new document only in March.
Asked on that date about the situation in Portugal, the commissioner with the portfolio of “An Economy at the Service of People” said that he had the opportunity to raise the issue with the Minister of Finance, João Leão, and indicated that Brussels will wait for a new project of budget to be sent by the Government that stops formed after as before January 30th, reason why it will not issue an opinion this month.
Dombrovskis revealed that, according to “an indicative calendar that has been provided to ministers, this could be the case in March of next year”.
Thus, leaving out, at this stage, the divisions of the commission on budget plans, Portugal must, however, be ‘included’ again in the report on macroeconomic imbalances, as over the years it has integrated the wide range of Member States that Brussels considers deserve increased vigilance.
The ‘autumn package’, the second consecutive one to be adopted by the Commission with the mandatory discipline rules of the Stability and Growth Pact suspended to allow Member States to deal with the crisis caused by the covid-19 pandemic, will be presented by the vice president -President Dombrovskis, by the Commissioner for Economy, Paolo Gentiloni, and by the Commissioner for Employment, Nicolas Schimt, at 13:00 in Brussels, 12:00 in Lisbon.
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