Federal debt servicing costs were absorbing 38 cents of every dollar of government revenue. This situation was clearly unsustainable, and many difficult and unpopular decisions had to be taken to clean up public sector balance sheets during the 1990s. In 1994 the Government launched a series of expenditure reductions which, by 1997, had reduced program spending by almost 20 per cent.
In the meantime – and this is my key message No 1 – banks could start offering SEPA direct debit locally and cross border under the conditions described as soon as the PSD is adopted in the member states. This is foreseen at the latest November 2009.