Slovak government to face confidence vote as debt hits limits

(Reuters) - Slovakia's government will call a confidence motion on Thursday, Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Wednesday, to face a required vote with the country's debt levels above thresholds set in constitutional fiscal rules.

The Constitutional Court said earlier on Wednesday the government must ask parliament for the confidence vote without delay. Officials had previously said the timing of any vote was up to the government.

Slovakia has had fiscal rules in place since 2012 that set limits on debt levels and trigger ⁠sanction and correction mechanisms to limit the rise in debt.

Slovakia's debt remains below European Union averages but is still above various fiscal rule limits, and exceeds 60% of gross domestic product, a level requiring a confidence vote.

Fico said he respected the court's decision and that the dispute was not over whether to call a vote. He said in his opinion a confidence vote could have been called later, when lawmakers discuss the next budget.

The government coalition holds 78 of ⁠150 seats in parliament, giving it a narrow majority.

Slovakia's debt levels have been rising, and the country has also faced an EU excessive deficit procedure for running a budget gap above a 3% of GDP ceiling.

The latest statistics office notification to the ⁠EU in April showed the 2025 budget deficit fell to 4.45% of GDP from 5.35% in 2024, while debt rose to 61.39% of GDP from 59.70%.
The court ruling came ⁠after a group of opposition politicians had sought an interpretation of the country's budget responsibility law.

They said, according to media reports, that Fico's leftist-nationalist government ⁠should have already called a confidence vote last November, when a two-year exemption had expired. The exemption was given after the government approved its policy agenda when taking office.