Portugal to unveil more austerity in budget

[October 15, 2012]  LISBON, Portugal (AP) -- Portugal's government is putting the finishing touches to a draft budget for next year which is expected to be one of the toughest in the country's recent history.

The finance minister has said the spending plan will include an "enormous" increase in taxes as well as further cuts in public services and civil service layoffs.

Portugal needed a euro78 billion ($101 billion) bailout last year to avoid bankruptcy when it was engulfed by the eurozone's debt crisis.

But it has struggled to reduce its deficit because the cuts have deepened a recession, sending unemployment to a record 15.9 percent.

The center-right government's austerity policies have triggered broad public outrage and brought tensions between the two parties in the governing coalition.

The government was due to publish the budget draft Monday.

[Associated Press]

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