German Chancellor Angela Merkel defends austerity in face of open rebellion in Europe

In a rare concession, the German Chancellor admitted that austerity alone would not solve the crisis but she insisted that the wave of political opposition to fiscal discipline was wrong.

“We’re not saying that saving solves all problems,” Ms Merkel said at a conference in Berlin. “[But] you can’t spend more than you take in. You can’t live your whole life this way. Everybody knows this.”

Read it all.