its parts : the asset quality assessment and the baseline and adverse scenarios of stress tests. banks not exceeding any of these thresholds had to submit within two weeks a capital plan for remedying their capital shortfall within a period of six to nine months. with the methodology used, 25 of the 130 banks assessed had a capital shortfall, which for the whole of europe amounted to €24. 6 billion. it should however be noted that, in anticipation of the exercise, many european credit institutions strengthened their solvency over the past year. of the aforementioned 25 banks, 12 increased their capital sufficiently in 2014, so only 13 of them, with a capital shortfall of €9. 5 billion, will have to take additional action to reinforce their solvency. we consider the results of the spanish banks to be positive. only one bank was below the threshold in one of the parts of the exercise, specifically in the asset quality review. in this case the estimated shortfall was very small and, during 2014, the bank took measures to strengthen its capital by an amount well in excess of that needed to cover its shortfall. taking bis central bankers ’ speeches into account these actions, at present all spanish banks amply exceed the thresholds set in the exercise. it should also be noted that spanish banks were the ones that had to make the smallest adjustments as a result of the asset quality review : a total of only 0. 14 % of their riskweighted assets. in conclusion, the results of the comprehensive assessment show that the restructuring process undertaken in the spanish financial system from 2012 has been successful and that our credit institutions face the future with healthy balance sheets and a sound solvency position. similarly, the structural reforms undertaken in recent years have played a crucial role in providing for a firm recovery and in correcting imbalances. it is imperative to stay the course and ensure sufficient growth to reduce the unemployment rate and anchor the economic underpinnings needed to sustain domestic and foreign demand. thank you. bis central bankers ’ speeches

governments should adjust their fiscal imbalance by 0. 3 pp of gdp and local governments should run a balanced budget. in 2015, the improvement in the cyclical position and the reduction in government debt yields will contribute to enhancing public finances. on the estimates available, meeting the deficit target for the coming year will require a budgetary adjustment drive, measured by the change in the primary structural balance, that is appreciably less than that made in previous years. overall, what we have is a more favourable macroeconomic scenario for the adjustment than that in place in 2012 and 2013. in terms of composition, under the budgetary programme the brunt of the adjustment is borne by government spending, since, as a proportion of gdp, it will be reduced by nearly 1 pp, basically due to cuts in government consumption. notable among the other expenditure items is that pensions rise by 0. 25 % as a result of application of the indexation formula included in the reform approved in december 2013. the budgetary plan envisages that the relative weight of revenue in gdp will increase by 0. 4 pp, despite the fact that the phasing - in of the personal and corporate income tax reform is estimated to have a budgetary cost in 2015 of some 0. 4 pp of gdp. the budgetary plan anticipates that the loss in tax takings associated with this reform will be offset by tax increases of the regional and local governments, the anti - fraud scheme of the social security system and a pick - up in tax revenue attributable to the economic recovery. meeting the spending targets will call for a very strict budget outturn by all levels of government, as well as the achievement of savings from the reforms approved, particularly by local government. finally, the budget envisages a public debt ratio of 100. 3 % in 2015, up 2. 7 pp of gdp on the projection for 2014. these figures illustrate the continuing importance the reduction of fiscal imbalances will have in the economic policy agenda for the coming years. the european banking union allow me to conclude with a reference to the process of banking union in europe. as you know, on 4 november the first pillar of the banking union project, namely the single supervisory mechanism, came into being. the single supervisory mechanism aims to harmonise banking supervision in the euro area so as, among other things, to sever the negative link between confidence in banks and doubts over the sustainability of public finances. bis central bankers ’ speeches