Portugal's Finance Minister Vítor Gaspar on Tuesday announced new austerity measures amounting to 4.7 billion euros for the period from 2014 to 2016. Taken together with the cuts recently approved for 2013 they mean the Portuguese face some very painful adjustments, the liberal business daily Jornal de Negócios points out sorrowfully: "The state needs to cut its spending by six billion euros. How? When? ... No one knows. But the finance minister's statements gave us a few clues as to where the axe will fall: most of the cuts will focus on getting rid of jobs in the public sector and reducing social benefits. ... If one thing is certain for the next four years, it's that they will be even more painful than the last few. Among other things because these measures will only increase the already far too high level of unemployment." (02/05/2013)

» full article (external link, Portuguese)
More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » National debt, » Euro crisis, » Portugal
All available articles from » Camilo Lourenço

In an interview with the Financial Times on Thursday, Irish President Michael Higgins harshly criticised the austerity policy of the EU and ECB and called for a "radical rethinking" of the strategies for fighting the crisis. The liberal daily Irish Examiner praises Higgins for this: "When it comes to a question of European attitudes to Ireland, this Government likes nothing more than to receive the 'best boy in class' commendation, particularly when the plaudits come from Germany's Angela Merkel. Yet Mr Higgins can also be assured that in the eyes of the struggling people of an impoverished Ireland where the plague of austerity is now endemic, his courageous criticism of oppressive European policies, his call for reform of the ECB, and his warning of the risk of social upheaval and loss of popular legitimacy are timely and entirely warranted." (03/05/2013)

» full article (external link, English)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » National debt, » Euro crisis, » Ireland, » Europe

Britain declared on Thursday that seven of its offshore financial centres including Bermuda and the Cayman Islands will participate in the automatic information exchange (AIE) of bank account data. The data is to be made available to France, Germany, Italy and Spain. The measure sounds powerful but won't necessarily be effective, the liberal-conservative daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung writes: "The AIE will for the most part be an empty formula as long as banks don't know who the economic beneficiaries are behind the company structures or trusts. According to global guidelines on money laundering, banks must identify the people behind such constructions. In practice, however, according to studies and those in the know, they have often not followed through. This is particularly true in the US and Britain, and in part in Britain's 'back yards' as well. ... The British announcements on Thursday had no small print on companies and trusts. For that reason it's an open question whether these agreements constitute much more than a PR job in reaction to the political climate." (03/05/2013)

» full article (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » Financial Markets, » Tax Policy, » Banks, » United Kingdom, » Europe
All available articles from » Hansueli Schöchli
Who's saying what » Europe fights tax evasion

In the aftermath of the collapse of a garment factory, thousands of people gathered in Bangladesh on Wednesday to demonstrate for better working conditions. Europe must assume responsibility here, the left-liberal daily De Volkskrant admonishes: "With each purchase the consumer gives his or her vote of approval for the deplorable working conditions in the garment industry. Because many consumers put the well-being of their wallets first, there is little hope of critical consumers making an impact. ... Therefore above all the textile industry must be induced to assume its social responsibility. It must promote minimum social standards in the customers' name. ... Europe could establish certain standard tariffs for garments from factories with poor working conditions, as the European Commission proposed on Wednesday. But this could lead to a tariff war without benefiting the workers in Bangladesh. Europe would be better advised to seek ways of rewarding producers for socially responsible behaviour." (02/05/2013)

» to the homepage (external link, De Volkskrant)
More from the press review on the subject » Trade, » Asia, » Europe
All available articles from » Xander van Uffelen

Rating agency Moody's lowered Slovenia's credit rating to Ba1, or junk status, on Tuesday. The conservative daily Večernji List warns that this should put Croatia on its guard: "No doubt Slovenia will soon find itself in the same pillory as the five states that have requested bailouts from the EU. What has happened to the Slovenians, who were always so resolute, well-organised, hard-working and thrifty in the past? Why have the biggest anti-Balkans in the Balkans suddenly become so Balkan-like? The answer is simple: the Slovenian politicians and some of the well-connected entrepreneurs spread the myth that keeping the national banks was in the best interest of the state and the common good. But in fact they used the banks as if they were self-service shops, ruining them and breaking the backbone of their own banking system. ... This should be an important lesson to all those in Croatia who still talk about big and crucial state banks." (02/05/2013)

» to the homepage (external link, Večernji List)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Economy, » Euro crisis, » Slovenia, » Eastern Europe, » Croatia
All available articles from » Gojko Drljača

The ECB's Governing Council will decide at its meeting in Bratislava today whether to further lower the main interest rate. Intervention by the European Central Bank is the right strategy now, writes the state-run liberal Wiener Zeitung: "Monetary measures would be most effective because they have a swift impact on the labour market. But with that the ECB would come too close to politics, and what's more, it's not the task of the ECB to prop up the economy. The irony of the crisis, however, is that precisely this would be the 'path of virtue' much quoted by German central bankers. ... Whether it likes it or not, the ECB is at the centre of the fight against the crisis. The political leaders are struggling to regain control but still wasting valuable time fighting about whether the stringent austerity policy should continue or not. The ECB will continue to have no choice but to try and bridge this period with money. Because it is not acting in a monetary parallel universe but in a Europe where eight million young people are looking for jobs." (30/04/2013)

» full article (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Labour market, » ECB, » Europe
All available articles from » Reinhard Göweil

Cyprus's parliament votes today, Tuesday, on the austerity programme agreed with its international creditors. The country has no alternative but to accept the conditions, the conservative daily Simerini fears: "Because there's no alternative to the memorandum, parliament has two options: either it approves it or it lets the country plunge into a disorderly insolvency. ... No one wants the memorandum. But the question is how to overcome the crisis with as few losses as possible - without the populist slogans that are so fashionable at such times and only confuse the people. ... Since we ourselves have no solution to our problems we will have to follow the orders of the troika, which we knew from the start would be particularly harsh and deprive the country of its sovereignty. The top priority should have been to avoid the current situation. Now we have no option but to grin and bear it and start from scratch again." (29/04/2013)

» full article (external link, Greek)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Europe, » Vatican

The Bulgarian Economy Minister Assen Vassilev wants to attract seniors in need of care from Western Europe to promote health tourism and prevent sanatoriums from closing down. The daily 24 Chasa backs the idea: "Of course it sounds risky to import pensioners from abroad when you can hardly offer local seniors a normal life. On the other hand, there are hardly any alternatives. The rampant corruption, the sluggish judiciary and the lack of qualified workers is enough to discourage most foreign investors. ... And hoping that young exiled Bulgarians will return and whip the country into shape is unrealistic. So the idea of caring for elderly Western Europeans in Bulgaria isn't so bad after all. Especially as many Bulgarian women are already doing just that, only in Greece, Italy, Germany and England. They would certainly love to come back home and be with their families if they could find jobs here." (30/04/2013)

» full article (external link, Bulgarian)
More from the press review on the subject » Demographics, » Tourism, » Economy, » Europe, » Eastern Europe, » Bulgaria
All available articles from » Pavlina Trifonova

Last week Portugal's government uncovered highly speculative financing models in use at public transportation companies. It now fears that this will tear another three-billion-euro hole in the budget. The liberal business daily Jornal de Negócios calls for the matter to be cleared up as quickly as possible: "This case raises many questions that the current government, former politicians and company managers must answer. ... Whenever taxpayers' money is used for doing business the results are very strange. What is particularly bizarre is that those who waste the tax money almost always get off scot-free. It's not enough to begin renegotiating with the banks that palmed off these products [toxic swaps] on companies that didn't need them. The government must find out as quickly as possible who did what and why. This case must not go down in history as yet another grotesque episode, worthy of a banana republic that simply buries public money in the sand." (29/04/2013)

» more information (external link, Portuguese)
More from the press review on the subject » Fiscal Policy, » Tax Policy, » National debt, » Portugal
All available articles from » João Cândido da Silva

The Greek parliament approved a new austerity package on Sunday as the precondition for a further 8.8 billion euros in bailout funds. But only a few hundred people turned up to protest the planned layoff of 15,000 civil servants and a reduction of the minimum wage. That's because there's no reason to complain, blogger Pitsirikos comments ironically: "The austerity package was passed in parliament while the Greeks were walking in the sun and showing how mature they are and how little they care about what happens in parliament. Among the particularly positive measures is a minimum salary of less than 490 euros per month, and less than 427 euros for workers under 25. ... Two months ago Prime Minister Antonis Samaras promised there would be no more reductions of the minimum wage. Now, however, he sees things differently. In any event he only plays a decorative role. Because let's not forget, the decisions are taken by the troika. ... But that doesn't matter. What really matters is that we remain in the Eurozone - even if it means employees end up not being paid." (29/04/2013)

» full article (external link, Greek)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Social movements, » Greece, » Europe
All available articles from » Blogger Pitsirikos