German finance minister under fire as budget gets out of hand

German Finance Minister Hans Eichel abandoned his longstanding aim of balancing the budget by 2006 yesterday and said the deficit would bust European Union limits again this year, prompting calls for his resignation. "We can't make it by 2006 any more, that is unless there is an economic miracle," Eichel told Der Spiegel weekly in an interview released ahead of publication today. Eichel's goal of wiping out the budget deficit by 2006, formulated in the boom year of 2000, has looked increasingly doubtful as growth in Europe's largest economy has stuttered to a near halt and unemployment has soared to 4.5 million. Eichel also said Germany would not meet the European Union's limit on public budget deficits of three per cent of gross domestic product in 2003. The deficit hit 3.6pc of GDP last year, prompting EU demands for action to get it down. Eichel rejected suggestions the deficit might even exceed 4pc this year. He said whether it would take an extra two or three years beyond 2006 to balance the budget depended on economic conditions, but he would not give up trying.