Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the existence of an excessive deficit in Belgium
Date: 2024-07-08
Institutions: Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs, European Commission
Subjects: Belgium, budget deficit, economic policy, economic reform, gross domestic product, public debt, public finance, stability pact

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 8.7.2024  COM(2024) 518 final 2024/0173 (NLE)  Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the existence of an excessive deficit in Belgium   
 
 
2024/0173 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the existence of an excessive deficit in Belgium 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 126(6) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Having regard to the observations made by Belgium, 

Whereas: 

1. 

2. 

3. 

According  to  Article  126  of  the  TFEU,  Member  States  shall  avoid  excessive 
government deficits. 

The Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) is based on the objective of sound government 
finances as a means of strengthening the conditions for price stability and for strong, 
thereby 
sustainable  and 
supporting  the  achievement  of  the  Union’s  objectives  for  sustainable  growth  and 
employment. 

inclusive  growth  underpinned  by  financial  stability, 

The  excessive  deficit  procedure  (EDP)  under  Article  126  TFEU,  as  clarified  by 
Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  1467/97  on  speeding  up  and  clarifying 
the 
implementation  of  the  excessive  deficit  procedure (1)  (which  is  part  of  the  Stability 
and  Growth  Pact),  provides  for  a  decision  on  the  existence  of  an  excessive  deficit. 
Protocol  No  12  on  the  EDP,  annexed  to  the  Treaty  on  the  European  Union  and  the 
TFEU,  sets  out  further  provisions  relating  to  the  implementation  of  the  excessive 
deficit procedure. Council Regulation (EC) No 479/2009 (2) lays down detailed rules 
and definitions for the application of those provisions. The EU’s reformed economic 
governance  framework,  which  came  into  force  on  30  April  2024,  includes  Council 
Regulation  (EU)  2024/1264  amending  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  1467/97.  The 
reform  kept  the  rules  of  the  excessive  deficit  procedure  due  to  non-compliance  with 
the deficit criterion broadly unchanged, whereas for Member States with a government 
debt ratio above 60% of GDP the excessive deficit procedure due to non-compliance 
with the debt criterion will focus on departures from the net expenditure path that will 
be set by the Council under Regulation (EU) 2024/1263 on the basis of the medium-
term fiscal structural plans to be submitted by the Member States. As the Council has 
not yet set the net expenditure path for Belgium, the Commission is not able to assess 
compliance  with  the  debt  criterion  in  accordance  with  the  new  rules.  Therefore,  this 

(1) 
(2) 

OJ L 209, 2.8.1997, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/1997/1467/2024-04-30. 
OJ L 145, 10.6.2009, p. 1. 

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Council  decision  only  concerns  the  excess  of  the  ratio  of  the  government  deficit  to 
gross domestic product (GDP) with respect to the reference value of 3% of GDP.   

According  to  Article  126(5)  TFEU,  if  the  Commission  considers  that  an  excessive 
deficit  in  a  Member  State  exists  or  may  occur,  it  must  address  an  opinion  to  the 
Member  State  concerned  and  inform  the  Council  accordingly.  Having  taken  into 
account its report adopted pursuant to Article 126(3) TFEU and having regard to the 
opinion of the Economic and Financial Committee adopted pursuant to Article 126(4) 
TFEU,  the  Commission  concluded  that  an  excessive  deficit  exists  in  Belgium.  On 
8 July  2024,  the  Commission  therefore  addressed  such  an  opinion  to  Belgium  and 
informed the Council accordingly. (3) 

Article 126(6) TFEU states that the Council must consider any observations, which the 
Member  State  concerned  may  wish  to  make,  before  deciding,  after  an  overall 
assessment,  whether  an  excessive  deficit  exists.  In  the  case  of  Belgium,  the  overall 
assessment leads to the following conclusions. 
According  to  the  data  validated  by  Eurostat  on  22  April  2024 (4),  the  general 
government deficit in Belgium reached 4.4% of GDP in 2023, and general government 
debt stood at 105.2% of GDP. The Commission’s report under Article 126(3) TFEU 
considered that the excess of the deficit over the Treaty reference value of 3% of GDP 
in 2023 is not exceptional, as it neither results from an unusual event nor from a severe 
economic downturn in the sense of the Stability and Growth Pact. In 2023 Belgium’s 
real GDP grew by 1.4% of GDP, following GDP growth of 3.0% in 2022. The excess 
over the Treaty reference value is also not temporary, based on the Commission 2024 
spring forecast, which projects the general government deficit to remain above 3% of 
GDP in 2024 and 2025. In sum, the deficit in 2023 was above and not close to the 3% 
of  GDP  Treaty  reference  value.  The  excess  is  not  considered  to  be  exceptional  as 
defined by the Treaty  and the Stability  and Growth Pact,  and not  temporary. Hence, 
the deficit criterion as defined by the Treaty and Regulation (EC) No 1467/97 is prima 
facie not fulfilled. 

According to the 2024 Stability Programme, Belgium’s general government deficit is 
planned  to  reach  4.6%  of  GDP  in  2024.  The  Commission’s  2024  spring  forecast (5) 
indicates a deficit of 4.4% of GDP, above and not close to the Treaty reference value 
of 3% of GDP. 

In line with the requirements of Article 126(3) TFEU, the Commission also analysed 
all  the  relevant  factors  in  its  report  under  Article  126(3)  TFEU.  As  laid  down  in 
Article 2(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1467/97, when assessing compliance on the basis 
of  the  deficit  criterion,  if  the  ratio  of  the  government  debt  to  GDP  exceeds  the 
reference value, relevant factors shall be taken into account in the steps following the 
report under Article 126(3) TFEU and leading to the decision on the existence of an 
excessive  deficit  only  if  –  before  these  relevant  factors  are  taken  into  account  –  the 
general government deficit remains close to the reference value and its excess over the 
reference value is temporary. In the case of Belgium, the double condition is not met. 

for 

Belgium 

documents 

EDP-related 

All 
finance.ec.europa.eu/economic-and-fiscal-governance/stability-and-growth-pact/corrective-arm-
excessive-deficit-procedure/closed-excessive-deficit-procedures/belgium_en . 
Eurostat 
April 
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/web/products-euro-indicators/w/2-22042024-AP . 
European Economic Forecast - Spring 2024, European Economy-Institutional Paper, No 286, 15 May 
2024. 

https://economy-

Indicators 

published 

found 

2024. 

Euro 

See: 

can 

22 

on 

at: 

be 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

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9. 

Therefore,  relevant  factors  are  not  taken  into  account  in  the  steps  leading  to  this 
decision. 

recommendation 

In  view  of  the  deadline  of  20  September  2024  for  the  submission  of  the  national 
medium-term fiscal-structural plan in accordance with Article 36 of Regulation (EU) 
2024/1263,  the  Council  takes  note  that  the  next  step  in  the  procedure,  namely  the 
Commission 
recommendation  under  Article 
for  a  Council 
126(7) TFEU on the correction of the excessive deficit, will take place together with 
the  Commission  opinions  on  the  draft  budgetary  plans  of  euro  area  Member  States 
under  Article  7  of  Regulation  (EU)  No  473/2013.  This  approach  allows  to  ensure 
consistency between the budgetary requirements under the excessive deficit procedure 
and  the  adjustment  path  set  out  in  the  medium-term  fiscal-structural  plans.  Enabling 
such  consistency  while  avoiding  a  surveillance  gap  under  the  excessive  deficit 
procedure,  requires  a  timely  submission  of  the  Member  States’  medium-term  fiscal-
structural  plans.  This  timeline  is  exceptional  and  linked  to  the  transition  to  the  new 
framework, therefore not setting a precedent. The Council also takes note that, in the 
absence  of  a  timely  submission  of  the  medium-term  plan,  the  Commission 
recommendation for a Council recommendation under Article 126(7) will consider the 
reference  trajectory  transmitted  by  the  Commission  to  the  Member  State  determined 
according to Regulation (EU) 2024/1263. 

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  

Article 1 

From an overall assessment it follows that an excessive deficit exists in Belgium due to non-
compliance with the deficit criterion. 

Article 2 

This decision is addressed to the Kingdom of Belgium.  

Done at Brussels, 

For the Council 
The President 

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