‘Limited’ French breach of EU deficit limit ‘acceptable’: Moscovici

European Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici yesterday said France’s likely breach next year of the EU-mandated deficit limit of 3.0 per cent of GDP would be “acceptable” providing it was “limited”. “The French deficit as forecast (by the government) today should reach 3.2 percent (of GDP) in 2019; I think such a figure is not unrealistic,” Moscovici told Public Senat television.

“3.2pc is a high figure, above the well-known 3pc figure,” the former French finance and economy minister said, adding that France would be the only EU country to breach the limit next year. He stressed that there was no defined sanction in case of a “temporary” breach of the 3pc ceiling, providing it did not last more than a year.

“Providing this breach is temporary, exceptional and, I should add, limited, it is acceptable,” he said. But he also warned France against allowing its overall public debt -- currently hovering close to 100pc of GDP -- to balloon, saying the country cannot “live long with such a high public debt level”.