This paper evaluates adherence of EU member states to the agreed policy recommendations to (i) redirect public expenditure towards growth-enhancing items and (ii) to improve the efficiency and control of public expenditure. Results show that countries that have been at the forefront of...

We investigate the track record of multi-annual budgetary plans of EU Member States formulated in the Stability and Convergence Programmes and updates. The study is based on the analysis of an original database summarizing the main macroeconomic and budgetary variables projected by the Member...

This paper investigates the effects of self-enforced expenditure rules on fiscal behaviour. According to theory, such rules can restrain spending biases if the political and institutional costs of non-compliance are sufficiently large. The empirical analysis indicates that the institutional...