France calls on Europe to ease off austerity

France has called on fellow European nations to ease off on painful austerity policies to give the economy some breathing space and avoid social upheaval.

Continuing a strict course of spending cuts and tax increases would only "nourish a social crisis that leads to populism," French Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici warned Thursday. "There is no alternative to starting a path that will lead to a return of growth," he added, speaking at a conference of the European Parliament's group of center-left parties in Brussels.

France's appeal comes as the debt crisis, which had grown to threaten the 17-nation eurozone's existence over the past three years, is easing in financial markets in the wake of political and economic reforms and a pledge by the European Central Bank to do whatever it takes to defend the common currency.

But the austerity cuts made to restore confidence in financial markets have had nasty side-effects on the economy – they have helped push the region into recession and increase unemployment to record highs. Voters in several crisis-hit nations have protested such EU-led austerity by supporting euroskeptic parties, most recently in Italy.

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