Bulgaria Signs EU Fiscal Pact with Reservations

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov arrives for the European Council Summit in Brussels, Belgium, 01 March 2012. EPA/BGNES

Bulgaria, together with 24 other EU Member States, signed Friday the Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union during an EU Summit in Brussels.

Prime Minister Boyko Borisov backed the fiscal treaty with a reservation concerning the coordination of economic policies, the press office of the Bulgarian Council of Ministers said in a statement.

Bulgaria declared that it would apply the EU Fiscal Pact prior to its accession to the euro zone in the conditions of an opt-out for provisions contained in part 4 of the treaty concerning the harmonization of tax policies.

Commenting on the Bulgarian signature under the treaty, Borisov yet again noted that Bulgaria could introduce the provisions of part 4 once it joined the euro zone, as long as the step was approved by Parliament, the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA) reported.

Bulgaria will apply the provisions of part 3 which "reaffirms the Maastricht Criteria for fiscal discipline, i.e. achieving a balanced budget or a budget surplus, a structural deficit of up to 1% of the GDP and a public debt-to-GDP ratio below 60%," the statement reads.

The Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance "aims to strengthen the economic pillar of the Economic and Monetary Union", the government reminds.

According to the media statement, the pact reasserts the principles of maintaining strict budget discipline and macro-financial stability which Bulgaria already observes.

The government notes that the treaty also reflects Bulgaria's stance on guaranteeing the right of Member States to pursue independent tax policies.

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