In januari 2014 was Tomáš Sedláček gastspreker op het 'Future of Europe'-nieuwjaarsevenement van De Tijd. De Tsjechische econoom schreef het boek “De economie van goed en kwaad” waarin hij aansluit bij de traditie van de politieke economie.
Belgium didn’t show a lot of fiscal discipline in the good economic times. Since 2009 our country belongs to countries in the excessive deficit procedure with a strict surveillance of the European Commission. The nonsensical debate about austerity should be overcome.
By giving incentives to early retirement pension systems aggravate the problem of financial sustainability.
Herman Matthijs discusses the important influence coming from new European budgetary rules. A thorough understanding of six-pack and the new procedures towards the European Semester is necessary for everyone following the budgetary procedures.
Marc De Vos sees economic theory and political reality diverging on the issue of deficits and austerity. Polarization is a huge waste of time. The budgetary challenge for Belgium is structural and not cyclical. The crisis cannot be an alibi to let the budget derail even further.
The budget debate in our country confronts us with the need for greater fiscal coordination at European level, the think tank Itinera argues. For Belgium the think tank sees but one good remedy: save on public spending at all levels.
By a constitutional binding deficit rule policy makers will be forced to take the necessary budget measures and to stipulate a real long term policy for the public finances.
Marc De Vos and Ivan Van de Cloot explain why the Belgian public debt is problematic. We will over many years, unfortunately, have to pay the debt bill of the past in order to build the future.
