Vote headache for Portugal's government

DEBT-STRESSED Portugal's embattled government was under further political pressure yesterday as parliament debated a motion of no confidence tabled by a fringe leftist party.

The largest opposition parties refused to support the motion, dooming it to failure, but the debate was an unwelcome ordeal for the minority government as it defends its economic record.

Markets are heaping pressure on Portugal, one of Europe's feeblest economies, as investors demand steep returns for lending the country money, amid fears it may not be able to pay it back.

Against a backdrop of strikes against pay cuts and tax rises, the centre-left Socialist government's support has slipped in recent opinion polls to around 30 per cent, compared with about 37 per cent for the centre-right Social Democratic Party.

Prime minister Jose Socrates said his government would not be knocked off course and would hold to its policies to restore the country's fiscal health.