Eurozone crisis: Democracy in the balance

We now know - from a leaked letter - that on 5 August the ECB sent a letter to the Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi. The European Central Bank insisted that "bold and immediate" action was "essential". But it went further, outlining policies that had to be followed before the bank would buy up Italian bonds and so lower the country's borrowing costs. Labour laws needed reforming and further cuts in public spending were necessary. For many Italians, this was a humiliation.

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