Household survey - Pockets are becoming close to bare

CSO findings of widespread cuts in household spending as a result of the economic crisis should come as no surprise.

But in a week in which the Government expressed hopes of creating 100,000 jobs, they serve as a reminder of the balance that must be struck between austerity and growth.

If consumers aren’t spending, businesses aren’t selling and all the employment creation supports in the world won’t make up for a marketplace that has no customers.