Member states deficit performance deteriorates

The European Commission says a fall in the deficit rate measuring the percentage of internal market directives that have not been implemented correctly and on time is only a temporary blip. Member states achieved their best ever deficit rate at the beginning of this year at 1.2% - for the first time exceeding the target rate of 1.5% - but the rate has crept back up to 1.6% in the latest review. Following the improvement at the beginning of this year, member states agreed in March to lower the target rate of deficits from 1.5% to 1% by the end of 2009, which has been met by nine member states – Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Slovakia and Slovenia. The UK’s transposition rate stands at 1.2%.