Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-06-14-Speech-1-153"
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"en.20100614.23.1-153"2
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"At the start of the economic crisis in the European Union, the Baltic countries were among those which were hardest hit. The Baltic tigers became the sick men of Europe following an economic boom lasting several years. Nonetheless, we now have Estonia preparing to join the euro area in record time. However, this country’s accession will strengthen the euro area at a critical juncture. We applaud Estonia’s ambition to adopt the single currency in spite of the crisis which has not left it unscathed. It has been able to tackle it with prompt austerity and fiscal discipline measures. Although they have been hit hard by the crisis, the Baltic countries have enjoyed the advantage of having a low level of public debt, which provided them with greater flexibility in relation to external loans. This is an important point to remember, bearing in mind that Estonia’s public debt to GDP ratio is 7.2%, far below the 60% reference value.
I think that it is now time for us to learn the lessons from the European crisis and from Estonia’s determination and for us to successfully find the happy medium between ambition and prudence. However, as part of this process, we must not ignore the social aspect of migrating to the euro. The experience of States which have previously joined it highlights major risks in terms of price rises. This is why I hope that the Estonian authorities will be able to apply balanced fiscal policies so that its citizens are not obliged to make major sacrifices. In this respect, Mr Scicluna is quite right to draw attention to the risk of inflation.
Last but not least, Estonia’s transition to the euro also has a symbolic aspect. It can serve as a model for countries in Eastern Europe whose enthusiasm has been dampened by the crisis, along with a decline in their real chances of meeting the deadlines for adopting the euro."@en1
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