Soft centre

摘要

Last November the European Commission set out its proposals for a Europewide fiscal stimulus, worth a combined €200 billion, roughly 1.5% of the 27-nation block's combined gdp. The commission has a relatively small budget and no authority to compel member states to shell out extra cash or cut taxes (and, to its regret, little clout to stop them from running up budget deficits). So it had to content itself mainly with a co-ordinating role.