Spain to help struggling mortgage holders

Spain today promised to help families struggling to pay mortgages during the financial crisis.

Government plans will also reward businesses that hire new workers.

Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said the measures will allow unemployed workers to postpone part of their mortgage payments, with a limit of £400 a month, for up to two years.

Mr Zapatero said the government would guarantee the delayed payments.

The government will also pay €1,500 to companies that hire newly unemployed people with families to support.

The plan comes in response to a soaring unemployment rate that now stands at 11.3% and an economy that is on the brink of recession.