Hungarian Parliament Approves EU Fiscal Pact
- 21 Feb 2012 8:04 AM
The governing parties and Socialist MPs voted affirmatively in a roll-call vote requested by Jobbik. LMP abstained and Jobbik rejected the draft resolution.
Signatories to the agreement – the 17 eurozone countries and all other EU states except Britain and the Czech Republic – agree to keep their budget deficit at 0.5% of GDP or lower.
Those countries with a state debt below 60% of GDP may run a budget deficit of up to 1% of GDP.
Countries that sign the pact must incorporate the reference to the budget discipline in their constitution or other law.
The European Court of Justice will be authorised to verify compliance with the agreement at the request of even one member state. Any country that repeatedly fails to honour its obligation will be subject to a fine.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in Parliament a week ago that all the provisions of the pact are acceptable to Hungary.
During the voting procedure Jobbik MPs displayed a poster with the caption “We shall still be a colony”.
Source: Hungary Around the Clock
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