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TEHRAN, November 13 - Italy's populist government was set Tuesday to defy the European Commission, preferring to risk financial sanctions than revise its big-spending budget.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - The coalition had been given time to change its 2019 plans but insists an anti-austerity approach will help kickstart growth in the eurozone's third largest economy, and consequently reduce the public debt and deficit.
The far-right League and Five Star Movement (M5S) plan to run a public deficit of 2.4 percent of GDP in 2019 -- three times the target of the government's centre-left predecessor -- and 2.1 percent in 2020.
But Brussels forecasts Italy's deficit will reach 2.9 percent of its Gross Domestic Product in 2019 and hit 3.1 percent in 2020 -- breaching the EU's 3.0 percent budget limit.
League head Matteo Salvini vowed Monday to put his back into "defending the budget, as if it were a rugby scrum".
The European Commission rejected Rome's budget outright last month -- a first in the history of the European Union.
It gave Italy until Tuesday to make changes and warned non-compliance could activate the "excessive deficit procedure" (EDP), a complicated process that could lead to fines and also risks provoking a strong, adverse market reaction.
While Rome targets economic growth at 1.5 percent next year, Brussels has forecast a more cautious 1.2 percent, putting Italy at the bottom of the table.
Source: AFP
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