HELSINKI, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- The debt ratio of Finland next year will continue to exceed the EU red line, a draft of the 2018 national budget showed on Wednesday.
As published by the coalition government, the total governmental budget next year is 55.4 billion euros, which is 400 million euros less than this year.
The Finnish "debt ratio" this year has been 65 percent and is still continuing. The concept describes the ratio of public debt to the GDP. The EU requirement is 60 percent.
The Finnish economy has shown signs of accelerated growth, but its impact on the debt ratio is slow. If the growth next year and in 2019 exceeds the predictions, the ratio would be 66 percent in 2019.
The draft shows a 3.4 billion-euro deficit, and the public debt would reach the total of 111 billion in 2018. However, the increase in the debt slows down, said the government.
The government has earlier defined its goal as it would start to level off of new debt in 2019 and would cease the new debt in early 2020s.
News analyst Minna Panzar of the national broadcaster Yle noted on Wednesday that reaching these goals would need more structural changes.
The spending cutbacks agreed in the 2015 government program are to continue. They will hit administrative costs, public support to students and special level health care.
Defense spending and funding for the police force will be increased. The budget is based on the assumption that revenue from taxation will increase 3 percent. The budget is still subject to various negotiations within the coalition. Enditem
