Glad to see we have the top brains on the job. According to the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, the prolonged recession is due to a continued decline in consumer spending and construction. Price hikes in all sectors, increased direct and indirect taxes (VAT, IBI, airport taxes etc), increased unemployment, wage reductions – way to go to encourage consumer spending. Why not take all of our money off us at source and have done with it once and for all.