'Lies' committee to launch Schroeder probe

Pressure on Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder over his management of Germany’s misfiring economy grew today, when MPs set up a committee to investigate whether the government hid the need for tax hikes and spending cuts ahead of September’s close-fought election.

The panel was set up at the urging of opposition conservatives, who accuse Schroeder of lying about the economic problems behind a yawning budget deficit revealed after Schroeder’s centre-left coalition secured a second term.