European warning over €1.5bn election budget

European Commission vice president Jyrki Katainen has warned that Ireland is “skating on very thin ice” with its plans to cut taxes and increase public spending.

His comments show the level of concern in the European Commission about the government’s plan to deliver a pre-election budget package worth up to €1.5 billion even though the economic recovery is still fragile.

Katainen said that it was understandable after years of difficult decisions that there ...