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Fiscal Policy Councils abroad
Councils abroad
Professor Simon Wren-Lewis has compiled a list of Fiscal Policy Councils in different countries and academic papers regarding the presence of Fiscal Policy Councils. You will find his list here
.Ireland may establish a Fiscal Policy Council
The Irish economic crisis has led to a re-evaluation of its fiscal policy. Amongst the suggested alterations is initiating an independent fiscal watchdog. On several occasions they have looked towards Sweden: to the Swedish Fiscal Policy Council and to their experiences.
Radio show on the Irish crisis and the Swedish crisis in the nineties
The Irish Examiner on Fiscal policy Councils
Hungarian Fiscal Council in risk of termination
In November 2010, the Hungarian ruling party, Fidesz, proposed a budget cut for the Fiscal Council. From an annual budget of almost 3 million euros, they would instead get 36.000 euros. Together with a proposed change in the member appointment procedure, this would heavily impede the council's future work, and would, in practice, put an end to it as an independent fiscal policy institution.
"There is only one country in the world where an existing independent fiscal institution has been scrapped", the council's Chairman George Kopits told the newspaper Világgazdaság in an interview. "The name and place: Hugo Chavez' Venezuela."
Earlier this autumn, the Hungarian Fiscal Policy Council voiced concerns regarding changes in the Hungarian budget and the lack of fiscal transparency.
Wall-Street Journal
Bloomberg
Hungarian Fiscal Council
The British debate on the Office for Budget Responsibility
Lars Calmfors comments on the British debate regarding the independence of the Office for Budget Responsibility.
Read the article in The Guardian
Calmfors interviewed by BBC Scotland
Professors Simon Wren-Lewis and David Blanchflower have stated their opinions regarding the debate about the Office for Budget and Responsibility. Wren-Lewis argues that the current structure could be made to work, whilst Blanchflower agrees with Lars Calmfors' point of view.
Wren-Lewis' article
Blanchflowers's article
Sam Flemming, Economics Editor of The Times, comments on the appointment of Robert Chote as chairman for the OBR and the recent debate regarding fiscal policy councils. He notes, amongst other things, Lars Calmfors' remarks on the OBR's lack of independence and IMF's suggested network of European councils.
Read the article
A new breed of fiscal watchdogs
The Council's chairman, Lars Calmfors, has together with George Kopits (chairman of the Hungarian Fiscal Policy Council) and Coen Teulings (director of Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis), published an article regarding the importance of independent fiscal institutions and how these can contribute to re-establishing trust in fiscal policy and preventing future fiscal crises.
The article can be read in English (Eurointelligence), German (Financial Times Deutschland), Hungarian (Népszabadság) and Italian (La Reppublica).
Conference on Fiscal Policy Councils
In March 2010, The Hungarian Fiscal Policy Council organised a conference on fiscal policy institutions. Lars Calmfors participated with a presentation of a paper on Swedish lessons and experiences.
Reforming Sweden's budgetary institutions - background, design and experiences
Konjunkturinstitutet:
Effekter på inkomstfördelning och arbetsutbud av olika regelförändringar simulerade med FASIT
Statens väg- och transportforskningsinstitut:
Systemfel i transportsektorn
Erling Steigum:
Sovereign wealth funds for macroeconomic purposes
Peter Birch Sørensen:
The Swedish housing market: trends and risks
Conference on the background reports Studier i finanspolitik
More information on current press conferences will follow shortly.