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Strasbourg – The Slovenian budget plan for 2026 could be inconsistent with European public finance rules, the European Commission warned upon the release of the autumn package of documents for the European semester. It urged the Slovenian authorities to take appropriate measures within the budgetary process to ensure that its fiscal policy complies with the rules.
Brussels assessed that the draft budget plan for Slovenia for the coming year could be inconsistent with its medium-term fiscal-structural plan for the period 2025-28. Accordingly, Slovenia must limit the growth of net public finance expenditures to 4.5 percent per year. This year, growth can be a maximum of 5.6 percent, while in 2026 it can be 4.4 percent. Cumulative expenditure growth can be a maximum of 12.1 percent this year compared to 2023, and 17 percent in 2026.
According to the autumn economic forecast published last week by the Commission, the cumulative growth of Slovenia’s net public finance expenditures next year is expected to be 19 percent, which represents a deviation of 0.8 percentage points of gross domestic product (GDP). Taking into account the national deviation clause aimed at increasing defense spending, the deviation will be 0.2 percentage points of GDP, the Commission explained.
This slight deviation is, according to unofficial information from STA, a result of the introduction of a mandatory winter bonus or Christmas bonus for all employees in Slovenia, including public servants. If the Christmas bonus had not been introduced, Brussels would not have issued a warning.
In this context, the Commission urged the Slovenian authorities to take appropriate measures within the national budgetary process to ensure that Slovenia’s fiscal policy next year is in line with the medium-term plan. They did not specify what these measures should be. (November 25)