Ireland needs another austerity budget

Another austerity budget taking at least €2bn out of the economy will be needed to make sure government spending is cut to the 3% deficit target for next year.

Without this, Ireland is set to miss the all important spending target, especially with overruns in health costs continuing to pose a threat, according to the European Commission’s economic forecast.

The economy will grow more strongly than expected, with unemployment dropping and a slightly greater increase in jobs than Brussels forecast just four months ago.