Taxpayers face 'four more years of austerity'

Taxpayers are facing at least another four years of austerity, including a bigger than forecast €2.5bn cut in government spending next year, according to the European Commission’s assessment of the economy.

Despite the billions pumped into the country’s banks, Brussels remains sufficiently worried about them, and unemployment levels, to monitor the government’s policies more closely.

The austerity measures that lowered labour costs, cut government spending and increased the tax take need to be continued and the planned tax cuts need to be paid for, the report says.