Budgeting

Thoughts from down under

Australia has an economic and fiscal position that most European governments can only imagine in their wildest dreams.  So why the current obsession with achieving a Budget surplus? Read more

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Chuck out the deficit, Swedish style

Should we extend the British love affair with all things Scandinavian – from Ikea to its crime series – by modelling our deficit reduction strategy on Sweden’s? Read more

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Restoring fiscal sanity to the US

The United States faces a financial crisis, with soaring debt levels and trillions of dollars in unfunded health and social security obligations. Radical reform is required to avert disaster argues the country’s former comptroller general Read more

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The veto verdict

Both Britain and Europe could benefit from David Cameron’s use of the veto in the EU treaty negotiations. The creation of a new structure will be easier without the UK sniping from the sidelines Read more

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The technocrat tendency

Italy’s new government will be made up mainly of non-political, technical experts. But democracy requires politicians, not technocrats, to make decisions and to be accountable to an electorate Read more

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