Earth Times
written by dpa
Thursday September 23, 2010 at 11:55:26 GMT
Berlin - Debt-laden European states need to demonstrate they are making progress in knocking their state finances into shape, European Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said Thursday.
Speaking at a conference in Berlin, Rehn said both Ireland and Portugal should press on with efforts to help shore up the stability of the 16-member eurozone, which was hit by a crisis earlier this year triggered by worries about mounting debt and deficits in parts of the region.
"In this sense, I trust that countries such as Ireland or Portugal will continue to tackle with determination their respective financial and fiscal challenges," Rehn told the conference, which was organized by the Economist magazine.
Along with Greece, Ireland and Portugal have been at the forefront of concerns about the threat posed to the stability of the euro by debt and budget deficits running well above the strict fiscal targets for eurozone member states.
His comments came ahead of the release next week by the European Commission of a new package of measures, which will seek to give high debt levels more prominence.
In the case of Ireland, Rehn told the Berlin conference that Dublin needed to demonstrate its commitment to bring its public finances onto a sustainable path by 2014.
He went on to say he also expected Portugal to tighten its grip on expenditure this year and to set out concrete measures for next year.
"I expect these new measures to be substantiated in the budget for 2011 which will be announced by the Portuguese government in the coming weeks," he said.
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