The Swiss debt brake served as a model for the new German budget rule. The two tools share the long-term goal of rendering fiscal policy sustainable by stabilising nominal debt as well as the short-term goal of smoothing the economic cycle. Debt brakes thus act as an automatic stabiliser within...

The Swiss debt brake is a fiscal rule at central government level which aims at stabilizing debt. However, business cycle fluctuations are also accounted for. This paper discusses criticism of the debt brake that it cannot feasibly simultaneously achieve either anti-cyclical or sustainable...

Independent fiscal councils are claimed to mitigate political failures in fiscal policymaking and increase fiscal performance. However, to influence and persuade policymakers these watchdog councils need to have access at different stages of the budget process. This paper examines the extent to...