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'Ball in Italy's court' says Moscovici

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Italy could face disciplinary action over its failure to respect European Union spending rules.

The European Commission found that Italy's public debt stood at more than 130% of GDP in 2018 - far above the 60% limit which EU rules requires.

The disciplinary procedure could ultimately result in an unprecedented fine of more than €3bn (£2.6bn).

European Economics Commissioner Pierre Moscovici has been speaking about this subject today.

He said: "No one should be in doubt that we will apply those rules if the criteria are not fulfilled".

"So now clearly the ball is in Italy's court. We need to see a credible path for 2019 as well as 2020. We stand ready to take into account any new elements that Italy may put forward, but let's not waste time".