Meanwhile, South of the Border

The Spanish Socialists are cutting taxes and enjoying it:

Spain's public debt will fall to around 34 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) next year from the 36.2 percent forecast for this year, Economy Minister Pedro Solbes has said.

The country's public debt stood at 46.2 percent of GDP when his Socialist government came to power in 2004 and will drop by 12 percentage points to sit at 34.2 percent of output by the end of its term in office next year, he told parliament on Tuesday.

The government, which is facing a general election next March, approved a 2008 budget that forecasts a budget surplus of 0.3 percent of GDP and calls for EUR 2.3 billion in tax cuts.

The government expects the Spanish economy, one of the most dynamic in the 13-nation eurozone, to expand by 3.3 percent next year after growth of 3.8 percent this year.