The IMF in it’s annual analysis of the euro area has given a damning indictment of the current economic situation and the failure of EU leaders and the ECB to deal effectively with it, saying the root causes remain un-addressed.

A person moving from unemployment benefit to a low-paying job loses about 5% of his income, but the OECD and IMF make widely different proposals on how to tackle what they say as a disincentive to work.

The ECB will be happy to swap the €31bn of promissory notes, reducing the debt burden on taxpayers, if the right deal can be made, sources in Frankfurt say.

Mitchell banking on report

Ireland came last in a report on what EU countries are doing to match their fishing fleet to the amount of fish that can be safely taken out of the sea.

Car owners are facing annual NCT or MOT checks on cars over five years old while technical checks for scooters and motorbikes will be introduced for the first time under EU proposals.

Moving and shaking on a sticky issue

Ireland has an ally in refusing to increase its low corporation tax rate, with Cyprus insisting it must not be forced to raise its rate as a condition of its bailout.

Cyprus, the fourth country to apply to the EU for a bailout, expects Russia will agree to give them a loan without conditions, according to Cypriot president Demetris Christofias.

A full public debate on whether Ireland should impose a €500m transaction tax on bankers and derivative trading is essential before the Government rejects the idea, Labour MEP Nessa Childers has said.