Germany’s Vice Chancellor and Finance Minister Wolfgang Schauble rejected the possibility of giving more flexibility to the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) and called for France to focus on structural reforms.

He said that Germany has proven that debt control is the right path to follow for development, he said during an interview featured on “Tagesthemen”, a program on the German ARD state channel. He said that Germany is willing to support France in its efforts, adding that running up new debt would be “the worst possible” thing to do. He said that EU members should “stick to the rules we jointly drew up. Nothing more, nothing less.”

The interview comes at a time when there is growing debate on whether countries such as France and Italy should be given more time to take care of their finances.