EU wants Portugal reforms to go beyond those already proposed

Eurozone Finance Ministers have told Portugal that it will have to implement new economic reforms if it wants an EU/IMF bailout.

They said the country will have to go beyond those proposed by its outgoing government.

The latest bailout is being discussed at a meeting of EU Finance Ministers in Hungary today.

Some commentators says Ireland may benefit from the development if the interest rate offered to the Portuguese is lower than ours.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan had hoped to argue for a cut in Ireland's bailout interest rate, but this week's developments in Lisbon have pushed that to one side.

This morning, Portugal's Finance Minister has said it is too early to estimate how much money they will need in their programme, but there has been speculation that it could be somewhere between €60bn-€90bn.