Using an extended data set of EU countries ranging from 1971-2006 and relevant econometric methods, we investigate the … economic, political, and institutional determinants of government deficits in the EU. The results show a strong opportunistic …

deficits in the EU-15 over the period 1971-2006, both at a country-specific level and from a population-wide perspective …

, we study the causality between government spending and revenue for the EU in the period 1960-2006. We find spend … Finland and the UK, and for several EU New Member States. Moreover, in the run-up to EMU there was some shifting away from a … spend-and-tax strategy, implying adjustments of fiscal behaviour. -- panel causality ; fiscal policy ; EU …

provide our own estimates for the EU countries. A fiscal expansion raises output and consumption and reduces the trade balance … open EU economies, consistent with larger leakage effects. Further direct estimates suggest that fiscal expansions in large … EU economies have non-negligible consequences for economic activity in the main trading partners. This provides a …