This paper is one of three in this Working Paper Series, along with those by Chouraqui et al. and Blanchard, in which the assessment of fiscal policy is reconsidered. It reviews the question of what type of budget indicators the OECD should compile. Instead of the cyclically-adjusted budget, it...

Boije and Fischer examine the role of fiscal indicators in the Swedish rules based budgetary framework, which requires that the general government budget position show a surplus of 2 per cent of GDP over the cycle. They consider the indicators developed by different institutions for measuring...

Woods examines the role of fiscal indicators in the UK fiscal policy framework. This includes the golden rule and the sustainable investment rule, requiring public sector net debt as a proportion of GDP to be held at a stable and prudent level over the economic cycle. Woods considers the wide...

What role can better quality of public finances play in supporting Europe's long-term economic growth prospects? This question was at the centre of the 2008 European Commission workshop on public finances. It was largely motivated by the pressures put on European economies and their budgets from...