EU Commission issues opinion on Poland's budgetary plan

On Tuesday, November 26, the European Commission presented its opinion on the medium-term budgetary plans submitted by 21 of out of 22 Member States.

"Medium-term plans are the cornerstone of the new economic governance framework. Integrating fiscal, reform and investment objectives into a single medium-term plan creates a coherent and streamlined process," the EU executive body said in a press release.

"Out of the 21 plans, the Commission assessed that 20 meet the requirements of the new framework and set out a credible fiscal path to ensure that the respective Member States' debt level is put on a sustainable downward path or kept at prudent levels," the Commission stated.

"This concerns the following Member States: Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden," the Commission listed.

Poland's Finance Minister Andrzej Domański announced on X that the European Commission had considered Poland's increased investments in strengthening its defense capabilities when evaluating the country's budgetary plan.

"We have received a positive assessment from the European Commission for our medium-term budgetary and structural plan! The Commission took into account the increase in investments aimed at enhancing our defense capabilities. We are focusing on economic growth driven by investments," the minister wrote in his post.

Due to upcoming elections or ongoing government formation, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, and Lithuania will submit their plans later. The Commission approved 20 plans and expressed concerns about the Netherlands and Hungary.

These plans detail fiscal goals, priority reforms, and investments. Countries under the excessive deficit procedure, such as Poland, explain how they intend to balance their budgets.

Currently, eight states are subject to the excessive deficit procedure.

Poland, like other EU countries under the excessive deficit procedure (EDP), submitted its medium-term fiscal plan slightly after the September 20 deadline, presenting it in October.

The plan aims to reduce the public debt to below 60% of GDP, limit the public finance sector deficit to under 3% of GDP, and exit the EDP within four years. These steps align with EU requirements, although some countries opted for a longer seven-year timeline.

Poland's strategy includes addressing fiscal goals, prioritizing key reforms, and increasing investments, particularly in areas like defense and economic growth. This comprehensive approach is designed to ensure fiscal stability and compliance with EU rules.