French Prime Minister Francois Fillon on Friday reiterated his country's goal of balancing the budget by2012, instead of 2010 required by the European Commission (EC).
Fillon told reporters that the country's reform is being carried out "at a good pace," insisting the government has "no intention of changing our economic policy, our fiscal policy, or our pace."
The French government plans to stimulate the national economy with a series of tax cuts, but the move might reduce its revenues and expand budget deficits.
Under the EU rules, euro zone members have to keep their budget deficit under the ceiling of 3 percent of their gross domestic product. They are also required to realize the balance of budget by 2010.
However, Fillon announced last September that France would not achieve that goal until 2012. He said the country had never had a balanced budget since 1974, with a deficit of 1,150 billion euros (1,702 billion U.S. dollars) registered at the end of 2006.
The announcement immediately incurred criticism from the then EU presidency Portugal and the European Central Bank.
As the EU's executive arm, the EC renewed the call earlier this week for France to respect the cutting of budget deficits by 2010.
Source: Xinhua
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