Ireland must lead growth pact review

IT is difficult to escape the perception that there is something radically wrong with the way Europe’s finances are managed.

Specifically, we refer to the rule forged under the Maastricht Treaty that limits the amount a member state can borrow in a given year to 3% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Clearly, this overly-restrictive policy is clamping a stranglehold on growth and development at a time when the economies of the world's second-biggest market are poised on the brink of recession.