The ageing population will be a major factor undermining growth in the coming decade and reforms are key not only for bridging the current crisis but also for effectively tackling long-term demographic challenges, Rehn said at a conference in Alpbach, Austria.

While some countries have been given additional time for fiscal consolidation - Slovenia got two more years to deal with an excessive public budget deficit - this time needs to be used effectively to speed up structural reforms, he said, mentioning France, Italy, Spain, Belgium and Slovenia.

Sources in Brussels announced in July that a delegation of the European Commission will visit Slovenia, probably in the second half of September, to check Slovenia's progress in the implementation of recommendations issued by the Commission in May.

The key points in the recommendations are the need to fix the banking system and take bold steps to reduce the deficit.