THE Government faces growing opposition to its nomination of Kevin Cardiff to the European Court of Auditors, with Fine Gael’s political grouping in Brussels questioning its choice of candidate.

Security around Austrian crystal heiress Fiona Swarovski has been tightened after police thwarted an alleged plot by a Romanian gang to kidnap her for ransom.

EUROPE’S economy lost steam in late 2005 as German growth screeched to a halt, but European Union finance ministers and economists yesterday clung to the belief that a long-forecast upturn would materialise this year.