SME Times News Bureau | 22 May, 2010
European Union finance ministers on Friday pledged for tougher sanctions against EU budget rule breakers, a move to contain the debt crisis in the eurozone and calm down financial markets.
The finance ministers of the 27 EU nations, who met for the first time to discuss changes to the way the 27-nation bloc manages public finances and its coordination of economic policy, looked set on to support a German proposal for to impose sanctions on those who violate the budget deficit and debt limit enshrined in the Growth and Stability Pact.
The minsiters also agreed to react speedily and more efficiently in future and to scale down their existing debt mountains to restore market confidence.
Recently, a crisis of confidence in Europe has been triggered by a potential debt default by Greece. The European Union and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have announced a $1 trillion emergency financial aid package
The debt crisis has provoked huge instability in EURO, shared by 16 countries, as investors flee the currency, pushing it down 6 percent this month.
