Mr. John Palmer:

If we continue to ignore its officials and they are right and we end up in excessive deficit, then the interest-bearing deposit will become a non-interest-bearing deposit. The State is then carrying the cost of that money, and if it does not abide by the advice of the officials and take the recommended actions, the interest-bearing deposit turns into a fine, which can turn into annual fines. Ultimately - this is where it ties into the surveillance regulation - if a state continues down that road, it is unlikely to be able to raise money on the markets, so it will probably need to look for assistance and then it will be into a macroeconomic adjustment programme, which is effectively where we are now. There are no particular sanctions because the EU has the ultimate sanction of not disbursing money.