Romanian coalition government survives multiple no confidence votes over deficit cuts

Romania's broad coalition government survived four back-to-back no confidence votes on Sunday, allowing it to push through deficit-lowering tax hikes and spending cuts that have angered public sector workers and raised the prospect of strikes. The four-party coalition government must lower the highest budget deficit in the European Union to avert a ratings downgrade from the last rung of investment grade and unlock billions of euros worth of recovery funds from Brussels. Earlier this month it sent five legislative packages to parliament with a budget impact of roughly 10.6 billion lei ($2.45 billion), fast-tracking their approval in a procedure which sidesteps lengthy debates but leaves the cabinet open to no confidence votes. "Our objectives are simple," Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan...