The Netherlands: Dutch debtors to get 6 month payment break - by Janene Pieters

The Netherlands plans to give people who are deeply in debt a six month break in which they don’t have to make payments, won’t get reminders for payments and won’t get a visit from a bailiff, State Secretary Jetta Klijnsma of Social Affairs and Minister Ard van der Steur of Security and Justice announced on Tuesday, NU reports.

With this break the government wants to give debtors the opportunity to catch their breath, create some order and make a plan to pay off their debt. During the six month period, income above the minimum standard will still be put aside for eventual debt repayment.

The government hopes to implement the measure by January 1st next year. The proposal was drawn up in consultation with debt relief association NVVK, bailiffs, the association of Dutch municipalities VNG and the four major cities.

The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of Dutch parliament, long insisted that a plan be made to give people in debt a breather. The ChristenUnie and the CDA eventually gave up on waiting for the State Secretary and submitted their own legislative proposal. But during a Kamer debate last month, Klijnsma promised to set up a proposal as soon as possible.

Read more: Dutch debtors to get 6 month payment break - NL Times

The ECB Grants Debt Relief To All Except Greece "for the time being" - by Paul De Grauwe

It looks like Greece may get some debt relief. There is as yet no certainty about this because some German politicians continue to conduct rear-guard battles to prevent it. What is certain, however, is that all Eurozone countries, with the exception of Greece, have been enjoying debt relief since early 2015. That may seem surprising to the outsider. Some explanation is necessary here.

As part of its new policy of ‘quantitative easing’ (QE), the ECB has been buying government bonds of the Eurozone countries since March 2015. Since the start of this new policy, the ECB has bought about €645 billion in government bonds. And it has announced that it will continue to do so, at an accelerated monthly rate, until at least March 2017 (Draghi and Constâncio 2015).

By then, it will have bought an estimated €1,500 billion of government bonds. The ECB’s intention is to pump money in the economy. In so doing, it hopes to lift the Eurozone economy out of stagnation.

I have no problems with this. On the contrary, I have been an advocate of such a policy (De Grauwe and Ji 2015). What I do have problems with is the fact that Greece is excluded from this QE programme. The ECB does not buy Greek government bonds. As a result, the ECB excludes Greece from the debt relief that it grants to the other countries of the Eurozone.

How is this possible? When the ECB buys government bonds from a Eurozone country, it is as if these bonds cease to exist. Although the bonds remain on the balance sheet of the ECB (in fact, most of these are recorded on the balance sheets of the national central banks), they have no economic significance anymore.

Each national treasury will pay interest on these bonds, but the central banks will refund these interest payments at the end of the year to the same national treasuries. This means that as long as the government bonds remain on the balance sheets of the national central banks, the national governments do not pay interest anymore on the part of its debt held on the books of the central bank

Read more: he ECB Grants Debt Relief To All Except Greece

Greece: Creditors offer Greece six-month bailout reprieve as Tsipras weighs response - by J. Hoopera and I.Traynor

Greece’s international creditors are aiming to strike a deal to stop Athens defaulting on its debt and possibly tumbling out of the euro by extending its bailout by six months and supplying up to €18bn (£12.9bn) in rescue funds.

The negotiators representing Greece’s lenders are also proposing to pledge debt relief for the austerity-battered country – but officials stressed that a breakthrough hinged on a positive response from the Greek prime minister, Alexis Tsipras.

Negotiations were continuing on Sunday night, hours ahead of crucial gatherings of eurozone finance minsters and leaders in Brussels, which Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, François Hollande, the French president, and Tsipras are expected to attend. All three leaders spoke over the weekend, with contributions from European commission head Jean-Claude Juncker.

Read more: Creditors offer Greece six-month bailout reprieve as Tsipras weighs response | World news | The Guardian

Egypt seeking debt relief from European Union

Egypt has asked Britain for its support in seeking debt forgiveness from Europe, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday, in the latest push to boost an economy bruised by weeks of protests that toppled President Hosni Mubarak.

Finance Minister Samir Radwan also said in a statement that the current government's immediate priorities center on helping Egyptians directly affected by the 18 days of protests, as well as enacting quick measures that could boost the economy.

The protests that led to Mubarak's ouster after nearly 30 years in power ravaged Egypt's economy, forcing banks to close, businesses to shut down and banks and the stock market to halt operations. The bourse on Tuesday further postponed the resumption of trading until next week, not specifying a date.

For more: The Associated Press: Egypt seeking debt relief from European Union