The long EU push for austerity could be slowing down as EU leaders meet this evening for their two-day summit which is being billed as an ‘austerity versus growth’ event.

IRELAND will not be seeking to impose haircuts on investors, Taoiseach Enda Kenny made clear during his visit to Brussels, emphasising that any debt write-down for Greece would be for Greece exclusively, as fears grew that such a move would destabilise the euro.

International statesmen have to be prepared to deal with dubious dictators their mothers would not approve of, the President of the European Commission said today.

Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean Claude Juncker, who assumed the European Union presidency on January 1, will aim to focus on reforming the rules that govern the euro currency when he meets with the European Commission today.