The credibility of this apparatus was badly damaged by the November 2003 public controversy between the Commission and the Ecofin Council over the application of the excessive-deficit procedure to France and Germany. This does not mean that it should be abandoned.
2003年11月，欧盟和经济财政理事会就额外赤字程序在法德两国的执行发生了公开的争执，使这项协议的可信度受到了沉重的打击。但这并不意味着这项协议应该放弃。