Social Democrats say they will not support current version of 2011 austerity package

The Social Democrats, meanwhile, have said that they will not support Finance Minister Eduard Janota’s new austerity package for 2011 in its current form. Party leader Jiří Paroubek said that planned cuts in benefits and savings incentives were ‘inadmissible’ and urged the interim government to incorporate progressive taxation into next year’s austerity package. The lower house recently approved an austerity package for 2010, which will cut next year’s budget deficit by 60 billion crowns (3.5 billion USD) to 163 billion crowns. Next year’s budget deficit is predicted to come to 5.3 percent of GDP, with Finance Minister Eduard Janota aiming to keep the budget deficit in 2011 to no more than 5.5 percent of GDP.