Italy declines to revise draft budget to comply with EU fiscal rules

ROME, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- Italy has declined to revise its 2019 draft budget to comply with European Union (EU) fiscal rules, Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio of the populist Five Star Movement told reporters after a cabinet meeting held Tuesday night.

The European Commission has rejected Italy's planned budget, arguing it fails to reduce public debt and is based on unrealistic assumptions, and giving the Mediterranean country until midnight on Tuesday to submit a revised version.

"The draft budget won't change," said Di Maio, who also serves as economic development minister. "We've been elected to reverse the austerity policies of the past," he added.