WARSAW, May 12: The lower house of the Polish parliament has approved the European Union’s budgetary stability pact, despite reservations from Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

The pact, which still has to be approved by the upper house before ratification, was passed late on Friday by 294 votes to 155.

The fiscal pact, clinched after marathon talks by EU leaders in March, is a German-inspired accord that puts pressure on governments to rein in spending and was signed by all 27 EU countries except Britain and the Czech Republic.

European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso warned on Wednesday that the pact was non-negotiable in the face of calls from French president-elect Francois Hollande for an economic growth element to be inserted.

Bundesbank president Jens Weidmann also warned Hollande on Saturday against tampering with the European Central Bank or the fiscal pact.

His comments come ahead of Hollande’s visit to Berlin on Tuesday, only hours after he is sworn in, when he is to have talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel that are expected to be tense.—AFP