VIENNA, April 24 (Xinhua) -- The Austrian government has Wednesday approved of its latest three-year fiscal policy as part of the European Union's stability program, which is set to meet the Maastricht criteria, also known as convergence criteria, for the first time.
The zero-budget-deficit that was reached in 2018 is to be maintained going forward, putting Austria on track to have a government debt-to-GDP ratio of less than 60 percent by 2023.
This would then mean all aspects of the Maastricht criteria, which comprise a set of conditions for European Union member states which plan to adopt the euro as their currency, will have been met.
The coalition government leaders were pleased with the result as they spoke to media following a meeting, the Austria Press Agency reported.
Chancellor Sebastian Kurz spoke of a "trend reversal" in that no new debts are foreseen, which he believes is essential given that debt is one of the most "unsocial" things a government can do to its citizens as well as future generations.
He said it was not just the currently favorable economic conditions that helped his government reach a zero budget deficit, as previous governments have also had good conditions yet still amassed debt.
"One can be proud that we have stopped 60 years of debt politics," he added.
Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache said it was "no matter of course" that a zero-budget deficit had been reached after decades of growing debt, and said it fulfills one of the coalition government's key election promises.
