You're right that it's preferable to lower debt when conditions are right but we're exact opposite situation. Green transformation, military spending, recovery after pandemic are critical expenditures. Green transformation is an investment that's going to pay for itself so artificial ceiling is just dumb. Without military buildup everything could be for nothing.
Neokeynsian or MMT economics would say that debt ceiling should reflect multiple factors but the currency you're borrowing in is a pretty important. We've also learned time and time again that austerity destroys economies, livelihoods and benefits those that are already wealthy. You have to invest to recover unless you plan on closing down the shop entirely.
For example, Polish debt is at ~50% of GDP at the moment (and that is after being much lower prior to pandemic). 80% of that debt is in PLN so were essentially borrowing from ourselves and repaying ourselves. Yet it's becoming a big deal that our temporary military expenditures are pushing us over 3% yearly limit. The whole policy is divorced from reality and kneecaps European economies. One of economists I follow calls it financial anorexia.
New rules sound like old rules. "Old" EU on average went above 60% right after signing original treaties without any serious issues so it seems like it was very flexible already too.
The worrying thing is that this doesn't even line up with modern economics / science. 60/3 limit is entirely arbitrary and based on 3 decades old wishful thinking.
Come on, our prisons are not Istanbul bad and the people that we jail are killed very rarely. Additionally policemen never go to prison so you know you're protected by the best that society has to offer.
I'm sorry to say but this person is unfit to mod c/Europe and has been deleting posts quite arbitrarily. Can you please do a fresh mod call? If you don't find anyone else I can volunteer my time in the interim.