If there was a “Rotten Tomatoes” ranking for the pontifications of institutes, the conclusion by German economy watchdog DIW that austerity measures in Portugal between 2010 and 2014 were “counterproductive” would get a bright green splat.
It’s the kind of report that anyone living in the country could have given the minute the measures were implemented.
But nonetheless, DIW’s ‘news’, released in the form of a study on Wednesday, is been religously repeated by media sources.
The institute’s conclusions also covered the crises in Spain and Italy – blaming austerity policies adopted there for having ‘dragged’ those countries into recession as well.
DIW refers to “failure”, adds Sol, highlighting the section in which researchers explain that dramatic cuts in public expenditure along with increased in taxation “impede” the “full effects” of institutional reforms.
DIW’s report was based on a study that analysed 12 OECD countries between 1980 and 2014.
