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The financial transactions act is one of the priorities of the Italian EU presidency, as its successors in 2015, Lithuania and Luxembourg, are not a part of the group that wants to introduce the new tax.

The tax is considered by the proponents to be a fair contribution of the financial sector, which has seen several bail-outs over the past years.

Initially it was proposed that the tax be imposed in all EU countries in 2014 but some of the member states, the UK especially, objected it.

Moreover, even the countries that remain a part of the initiative that wants a financial transactions tax imposed are not on the same page as regards the list of taxable transactions or how these should be taxed.

In May, ten countries, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Austria, Estonia, Portugal, Greece and the Slovak Republic, signed an agreement obligating themselves to impose the tax in January 2016.

Slovenia did not sign the agreement, although it showed support for the initiative. The then Finance Minister Čufer said that the economic logic behind the tax was no longer viable but the country did not withdraw from the group.

Čufer's statement was interpreted in Brussels as reflecting the domestic political situation, as Slovenia was awaiting general election after the government stepped down earlier in the year.