Terrific, someone is talking the honest truth at last. Thank you Mr Steinbruck. Brown ran up our huge deficit BEFORE the recession although much of it was off ba,ance sheet a la Enron. The VAT cut is crass as it has just deprived the treasury of £12 billion for nothing. Brown must Go NOW.

Martin Bellamy, cirencester, Glos

Steinbrück was right.Germany has been running a solid financial system for decades until they were conned into the euro - no vote of course.Brown has successfully devalued the £, brought the FTSE to its knees and the GDP from 4th to 6th and falling. It does not take a genius to spot an incompetent

M. Cawdery, Portadown, Co UK, EU (courtesy Brown)

Trouble is that he (the German Finance Minister) is right. Gordon might have Saved The world but we will be paying for it for many years to come. We need to stop spending because too much spending when we could not afford it got us here.

Good idea: Borrow your way out of debt ?

Ian, Norwich, UK

When this is all over with, germany will export itself back into financial health.
And what is Britain going to do?
Its got nothing,and most of its industry is foreign owned.
Even its utilities are mainly foreign owned.
Anyone with any sense is planning to leave bankrupt britain

antony graham, southport, lancs

I think the German is correct.
I own and manage 6 private limited companies that are debt free. Our destiny is in the hands of the man that got it all wrong.
Prudence the Regulator and Gordon the Clown live at the Apollo. Debts and inefficiency - Gordon got the lot.

Bob, Liskeard, UK (Cornwall)

As a regular visitor to Germany I have seen the effects of unification, and EU enlargement that are akin to recession if not depression, and the effect on the average German. The scale of social/welfare intervention is huge. If Germany slides, and no action is taken then the result will be disaster.

jimd, Norwich, uk

Nice reply from old Gordon.

In any case zee Germans are as much in trouble as we are. Their prized and excellent manufacturing base will be horribly eroded during 2009, with their biggest names going to the government for hand outs from Q3onwards. There will be no winners anywhere.

David, London, UK

There seems to be no theory of economics that offers a solution when confidence evaporates on a global scale. Mr Steinbrück is undoubtedly right: prudence is better than wanton abandon. It's good to know that Germany thinks Mr. Brown is not as prudent as he would have us believe.

Dwight Vandryver, Scholar Green, UK

just because someone is in the minority does not mean they are incorrect. The UK better get ready for heavy tax rises as the money has to be paid back. The UK cannot go bankrupt!

Bob, London,

This government is as all Labour governments are, terrible at managing money. I really worry about what they are doing. You can't stop a recession but they need to do what ever they can regardless of the Tax payer to keep them selves in power. Sooner they go the better for the british tax payer

Alex Hoyland, Easingwold, Ghana

One thing I like about Germans is they say it straight. Our politicians are all spin. THey are never frank with the public. I think we should do a wife swap: Our Darling for Peer. ITs a shame on Gordon Brown to be lectured by Germany Finance Minister.

Jack Wood, Preston, Britain

presumably other countries who are "doing what we're doing" haven't actually mismanaged their economies for 10 years, haven't broken their own rules and aren't largely wasting the money with very little to show for it?

jem, london, uk

But do we want people to buy the DVD player at all? As it would almost certainly have been manufactured in the far east and a help to someone elses economy.

Cirep G Nol, London,

Mr Steinbruck's comments prove what a lot of us suspected -the Brown/Darling approach is all about headlines now , then higher taxes and spending cuts after the votes have been counted and the debts have to be paid.

Allan Stewart, Neilston, Scotland

Mr Steinbruck is right in saying: "When I ask about the origins of the crisis, economists I respect tell me it is the credit-financed growth of recent years and decades." Brown preened himself as Chancellor for being 'prudent. Now, depressingly is pursuing policies and stoking future crises.

Robin, Copenhagen, Denmark

I think it was highly undiplomatic of Mr Steinbruck to say what he did on the record.
Having said that, I find myself agreeing with his analysis that the few pence saved on the already heavily discounted price of a new DVD player will make precious little difference to my spending intentions.

Steven C Turnbull, Torquay, United Kingdom

Why is nothing being said in parliament about the 'run' on sterling? How far does sterling have to fall to become a 'run'? It is looking more and more like an orchestrated decline by those 'who matter' to force the UK to adopt the euro.

Yorkie, London,

The Germans are right of course. When will this government stop using the phrase beginning "It's a matter for......" as some kind of get out clause for any responsibility.

Steve P, Maidenhead, UK

Considering, that Brown got us into this mess why would you want to follow his solution to ge out of it?

Frederick, London, UK

The German's are right. Brown hasn't got a clue. Why only reduce rates for home owners? I have already heard how thousands are rubbing their hands with glee on saving hundreds off their mortages. So what about the ones who rent? The loose out and in the meantime the landlord gets richer. Fair? NO!

James Cole, London, UK

The German finance minister is right. We had a straw poll at work (20 people) and 18 of us also think he is right.

Our government is either deluded or lying with the usual dose of spin they put on things. The sooner they go the better for all of us.

Mark, Newbury,

Steinbrueck is both right and wrong.The VAT cut will have an effect particularly now around Christmas, so he is wrong here. However he is right that we cannot afford this as we already have too much debt. Brown knows the recession will end but it will be too late for him without the financial boost.

Andrew Piercy, London, UK

Germany still has many problems from combining East and West.

These have been masked by their entry into the Euro and blinkered thinking in the money markets.

The Euro is backed by the reputation of the German economy. Germany's reputation is based on pre-unification performance.

Smoke & Mirrors!

J D S, Cardiff, UK

Mr Steinbruck has only said what the majority of the UK population have been saying for some time. Will GB/AD listen? Of course not! This country is close to collapse. Brown and Darling should be jailed for what they have done to us. It's going to be miserable for us and the next generation

Phil, Rugby, England

What should we call it.
Labour's toxic debt or Brown's mess .

andyH, Twickenham,

The British economy is out of control and rapidly going down the pan. The Germans are right and every economic indicator suggests this. Gordon Brown is rapidly running out of options apart from a general election which will utterly destroy the Labour party.

Steve, Birmingham, United Kingdom

germany as the most sucessful economy in the eu,and for the german finance minister to call browns spending plans irrisponsible just shows that gordon brown as not a clue when it comes to finacial matters and only for tony blair making brown out to be some sort of genius ,on spin only maybe i think.

thomas, wallasey, uk

millions of Britains will be applauding this German common sense

S.MacDonald, Cambridge,

Cheers Mr Steinbruck the extra vat you are canning out of the German people can be used to prop us up, keep it up! Come to think of it raising taxes in Germany might not be a bad idea we are going to be needing it real soon.

Lexx Aston, City, U.K

They may be spending more, but they haven't started of from a basically bankrupt position. No one really knows the true level of debt this country has hidden away in private finance initiatives..

scott, birmingham,