Gemiddeld begrotingstekort EU-landen en eurozone daalt ten opzichte van vorig jaar (en)

In 2010 the largest government deficits in percentage of GDP were recorded in Ireland (-32.4%), Greece (-10.5%), the United Kingdom (-10.4%), Spain (-9.2%), Portugal (-9.1%), Poland (-7.9%), Slovakia (-7.9%), Latvia

(-7.7%), Lithuania (-7.1%) and France (-7.0%). The lowest deficits were recorded in Luxembourg (-1.7%), Finland (-2.5%) and Denmark (-2.7%). Estonia (0.1%) registered a slight government surplus in 2010 and Sweden (0.0%) was in balance. In all, 21 Member States recorded an improvement in their government balance relative to GDP in 2010 compared with 2009 and six a worsening.

At the end of 2010, the lowest ratios of government debt to GDP were recorded in Estonia (6.6%), Bulgaria (16.2%), Luxembourg (18.4%), Romania (30.8%), Slovenia (38.0%), Lithuania (38.2%), the Czech Republic (38.5%) and Sweden (39.8%). Fourteen Member States had government debt ratios higher than 60% of GDP in 2010: Greece (142.8%), Italy (119.0%), Belgium (96.8%), Ireland (96.2%), Portugal (93.0%), Germany (83.2%), France (81.7%), Hungary (80.2%), the United Kingdom (80.0%), Austria (72.3%), Malta (68.0%), the Netherlands (62.7%), Cyprus (60.8%) and Spain (60.1%).

In 2010, government expenditure4 in the euro area was equivalent to 50.4% of GDP and government revenue4 to 44.4%. The figures for the EU27 were 50.3% and 44.0% respectively. In both zones, the government expenditure ratio decreased between 2009 and 2010, while the government revenue ratio remained almost unchanged.

Reservations on reported data

Romania: Eurostat is expressing a reservation on the quality of the data reported by Romania, due to uncertainties on the impact of some public corporations on the government deficit, on the reporting of ESA95 categories "other accounts receivable and payable", on the nature and impact of some financial transactions and on the consolidation of intra-governmental flows.

United Kingdom: Eurostat is expressing a reservation on the quality of the data reported by the United Kingdom, due to uncertainties on the time of recording of military expenditure. The United Kingdom does not record military expenditure on a delivery basis, as required by the relevant Eurostat Decision of 9 March 2006.

Amendment by Eurostat to reported data

United Kingdom: Eurostat has amended the deficit data notified by the United Kingdom for the years 2007 to 2010 for consistency of recording of UMTS licences proceeds in 2000. This leads to an increase in the government deficit in 2007 and 2008 (as well as for financial years 2007/2008 and 2008/2009) by 1 044 mn GBP (0.1% of GDP) and in 2009 and 2010 (financial years 2009/2010 and 2010/2011) by 1 045 mn GBP (0.1% of GDP). There is no change in the reported debt figures.

Eurostat has also amended the deficit and debt data notified by the United Kingdom for the years 2008 to 2010 (as well as for financial years 2008/2009 to 2010/2011), to ensure compliance with the Eurostat guidance note of

16 March 2011 on financial defeasance structures7, with respect to Bradford & Bingley (B&B) and Northern Rock Asset Management (NRAM). This leads to an increase in government deficit by 360 mn GBP (0.03% of GDP) in 2008 (as well as in financial year 2008/2009), by 571 mn GBP (0.04% of GDP) in 2009 (as well as in financial year 2009/2010) and by 1 023 mn GBP (0.07% of GDP) in 2010 (as well as in financial year 2010/2011). The reported debt figures are increased by 32 374 mn GBP (2.24% of GDP) in 2008 (as well as in financial year 2008/2009), by 19 969 mn GBP (1.43% of GDP) in 2009 (as well as in financial year 2009/2010) and by 56 821 mn GBP (3.89% of GDP) in 2010 (as well as in financial year 2010/2011).

Other issues

• i. 

  Financial defeasance structures

A number of governments have been confronted with the consequences of the banking crisis, and the necessity of dealing with impaired assets. In some cases this has led to the establishment of specific public financial defeasance structures, with significant support of government. This was particularly the case for Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Austria, Portugal, and the United Kingdom8.

• ii. 

  Intergovernmental lending

For the purpose of proper consolidation of general government debt in European aggregates and to provide users with information, Eurostat is now publishing data on government loans to other EU governments. For 2010 the intergovernmental lending figures relate mainly to lending to Greece.

• iii. 

  Supplementary tables for the financial crisis

Annex 2 contains supplementary tables for the financial crisis for the EU and the euro area. Eurostat publishes supplementary tables by Member State on its website:

http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/government_finance_statistics/excessive_deficit/supplementary_tables_financial_turmoil .

These tables contain data on the "net revenue/cost for general government (impact on ESA95 government deficit)" and "outstanding amounts of assets, actual liabilities and contingent liabilities of government" in relation to government interventions in the context of the financial crisis for the years 2007 to 2010. See also the Eurostat decision on the statistical recording of public interventions to support financial institutions and financial markets during the financial crisis (Eurostat News Release 103/2009 of 15 July 2009).

Background

In this News Release, Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, is providing9 government deficit and debt data based on figures reported in the first 2011 notification by EU Member States for the years 2007-2010, for the application of the excessive deficit procedure (EDP). This notification is based on the ESA95 system of national accounts. This News Release also includes data on government expenditure and revenue and an annex with the main revisions since the November 2010 News Release.

Eurostat will also be releasing information on the underlying government sector accounts, as well as on the contribution of deficit/surplus and other relevant factors to the variation in the debt level (stock-flow adjustment), on the government finance statistics section on its website:

http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/government_finance_statistics/introduction

• - 

  According to the Protocol on the excessive deficit procedure annexed to the EC Treaty, government deficit (surplus) means the net borrowing (net lending) of the whole general government sector (central government, state government, local government and social security funds). It is calculated according to national accounts concepts (European System of Accounts, ESA95). Government debt is the consolidated gross debt of the whole general government sector outstanding at the end of the year (at nominal value).
• - 

  Table of euro area and EU27 aggregates: the data are in euro. For those countries not belonging to the euro area, the rate of conversion into euro is as follows:
• - 

  for deficit / surplus and GDP data, the annual average exchange rate;
• - 

  for the stock of government debt, the end of year exchange rate.
• - 

  Table of national data: these are in national currencies. For Cyprus, Malta, Slovenia, Slovakia and Estonia, data for the years prior to the adoption of the euro have been converted into euro according to the irrevocable conversion rate.
• - 

  Euro area (EA17): Belgium, Germany, Greece, Spain, Estonia, France, Ireland, Italy, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland. In the attached table, the euro area is defined as including Cyprus, Estonia, Malta and Slovakia for the full period, although Cyprus and Malta joined the euro area on 1 January 2008, Slovakia on 1 January 2009 and Estonia on 1 January 2011.
• - 

  In the previous provision of data for the excessive deficit procedure, the 2009 government deficits for the EA16 and the EU27 were 6.3% and 6.8% of GDP respectively. The government debt of the EA16 was 79.2% of GDP and of the EU27 74.0% of GDP. See News Release 170/2010 of 15 November 2010.
• - 

  Government expenditure and revenue are reported to Eurostat under the ESA95 transmission programme. They are the sum of non-financial transactions by general government, and include both current and capital transactions. For definitions, see Council Regulation No. 2223/96, as amended. It should be noted that the government balance (i.e. the difference between total government revenue and expenditure) is not exactly the same under ESA95 as that for the purpose of the excessive deficit procedure. Regulation (EC) No 2558/2001 on the reclassification of settlements under swaps agreements and forward rate agreements implies that there are two relevant definitions of government deficit/surplus:
• - 

  The ESA95 definition of net lending /net borrowing does not include streams of payments and receipts resulting from swap agreements and forward rate agreements, as these are recorded as financial transactions;
• - 

  For the purpose of the excessive deficit procedure, streams of payments and receipts resulting from swaps and forward rate agreements are recorded as interest expenditure and contribute to the net lending/net borrowing of general government.

Concerning 2010, for most Member States, the difference, if any, between the two balances is minor except in Sweden (0.31% of GDP), Finland (0.31% of GDP), Denmark (0.21% of GDP), Belgium (0.13% of GDP), Italy (0.11% of GDP), the Netherlands (0.10% of GDP) and Greece (-0.10% of GDP). These differences improve net lending/net borrowing for EDP purposes for all the mentioned countries except Greece.

• - 

  The term “reservations” is defined in article 15 (1) of Council Regulation 479/2009, as amended. The Commission (Eurostat) expresses reservations when it has doubts on the quality of the reported data.
• - 

  According to Article 15 (2) of Council Regulation 479/2009, as amended, the Commission (Eurostat) may amend actual data reported by Member States and provide the amended data and a justification of the amendment where there is evidence that actual data reported by Member States do not comply with the quality requirements (compliance with accounting rules, completeness, reliability, timeliness and consistency of statistical data).
• - 

  The Guidance note on financial defeasance structures can be found on Eurostat's website at:

http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/government_finance_statistics/methodology/guidance_accounting_rules

• - 

  A separate note is provided on the statistical treatment of government involvement in the banking crisis in 2010, see section 2 of the Eurostat summary note (April 2011) on supplementary tables for the financial crisis at:

http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/government_finance_statistics/excessive_deficit/supplementary_tables_financial_turmoil

• - 

  According to Article 14 (1) of Council Regulation 479/2009, as amended, Eurostat provides the actual government deficit and debt data for the application of the Protocol on the excessive deficit procedure, within three weeks after the reporting deadlines. This provision of data shall be effected through publication.

For further information on the methodology of statistics reported under the excessive deficit procedure, please see Council Regulation 479/2009, as amended by Council Regulation 679/2010 (consolidated version available at http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:2009R0479:20100819:EN:PDF), Council Regulation 2223/96, as amended (consolidated version available at http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/site/en/consleg/1996/R/01996R2223-20030807-en.pdf) and the Eurostat publication "ESA95 manual on government deficit and debt", third edition, 2010, http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/product_details/publication?p_product_code=KS-RA-09-017