And indeed, fiscal policy in the euro area has been loosened noticeably over the past few years. In contrast to what would be needed given the still high debt levels in many euro-area countries, governments’ savings in interest payments aren’t being put towards the urgent goal of reducing debt, but instead are being spent to a significant extent.
John F Kennedy once said: “The time to repair a roof is when the sun is shining.” This is most certainly true. But if you don’t want to risk permanent damage to your house, you sometimes have no choice but to repair the roof when it’s raining.