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In the meantime the government will put together figures which will serve as the basis for the decision whether the law enacting the fiscal rule will be sent to the parliament's constitutional commission, Speaker Janko Veber said.

"This is a unanimous decision by all parties, the proponents [the Democrats] will not oppose it," he said after a meeting with deputy group leaders.

PM Alenka Bratušek said she was glad that the parties were able to find common ground on the need to get new fiscal calculations underpinned by the latest macroeconomic assessments prior to making the decision.

"I'm glad we realize that the fiscal rule must be written so it can be implemented in practice...Our priority is to prepare calculations that will form a realistic basis for an agreement," she said.

The proposal that the Constitution be amended with a fiscal rule had been all but shelved after the Janez Janša government failed to garner the required two-thirds majority in parliament last year.

However, on 2 April the deputy group of Janša's Democrats (SDS) requested an emergency session of parliament, arguing that this would push the costs of borrowing down and help the country maintain sustainable levels of public finance.

Bratušek had previously indicated that a compromise was within reach, suggesting that there was emerging consensus the rule could be implemented in 2015.

Asked today whether her Positive Slovenia (PS) was willing to accept 2015, Bratušek said she would not speculate.

Her party has voiced concern whether it is feasible to balance the budget by 2015, but the SDS said today this was an "artificial dilemma", as the wording of the proposed fiscal rule is flexible enough to allow for the balancing of the budget over the medium term.

The PS and the fellow coalition Social Democrats (SD) have been reserved about the fiscal rule, but all other parties, including the junior coalition Citizens' List (DL) are in favour.

DL president Gregor Virant said today's agreement was a "good compromise" which he understands as "a commitment, a will to amend the Constitution with a fiscal rule in the foreseeable future, presumably by the end of May".

He said while bickering on this issue in parliament today "would have sent the worst possible message to financial markets."

On the other hand, Peter Kraljič, director emeritus of management consultancy firm McKinsey, was very critical of the delay, which he believes only undermines Slovenia's credibility.

Slovenia has promised to include the fiscal rule in the Constitution anyway, so why the endless debates, Kraljič wondered at an event in Maribor.

"Nobody would have needed the fiscal rule if only politicians stuck to the Maastricht Treaty. Now we needed it because everybody sinned, starting with France and Germany, which were the first two to have disrespected the criteria," he said.