Klemen Boštjančič allowed the growth of public spending, while Andrej Šircelj advocates its strict control.
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The future minister Andrej Šircelj, in the photo with Klemno Boštjančič, the minister in charge of current affairs, announces much stricter control of public finances. PHOTO: Blaž Samec
According to the budget documents that the outgoing government forwarded to Brussels in April, Slovenia will create a budget deficit of 3.3 percent of GDP this year, and next year it will increase even more, the European Commission estimates. Slovenia has, for now, avoided starting the procedure due to an excess deficit, but the EC expects to prepare a rebalance by autumn with appropriate measures to reduce public spending. In his defense before the parliamentary committee, the candidate for finance minister of the incoming government, Andrej Šircelj, has already announced a radical rebalancing, which will go beyond mere adjustment due to a different structure and number of ministries. With the larger deficit estimated by the European Commission based on current forecasts, Slovenia’s public debt will remain at around 65 percent of GDP. …
