Thanks for the interesting link.
But if really "liberalizing the labour market, weakening union power and State regulation of business, and reducing taxes" is meant, Paul Betts is quite out of touch with 'neoliberal' econimists and conservatives in Germany.

Liberalizing the labour market just in a moment where a boom starts to destabalize? So the buisinesses have not employed people before, because they were afraid they could not get rid of them in times of crisis and when the crisis comes, the rules are changed?
And of course discrediting conservative politics for years.

Tax cuts are now requested more by left leaning econimists for stabilising demand, when it falters in the US, while Merkel has announced, no tax cuts until the federal budget is balanced - which can take some more years.
The alternative of course would be creating some demand by stopping the fall of overall wages as part of the GDP, but how this can be achieved with weakening union power right now.

But of course Jerome a Paris justifies conservative politics. The income tax in France he quotes is much lower than in UK or the US. The reckless spending of Bush and Blair in the last years, which might have created some short term stimulus, comes at a high price, as the money was borrowed mostly from other countries. The true conservatives are in continental Europe, not in the anglo-saxon countries.
If the US was an anglo-saxon country as the image is, right now the Fed would raise rates, the Gov would increase taxes or cutting spending (with 50% or a trillion$/a military spending it should not be difficult to find something to cut), nobody would even speak about stimulus on credit. While in Europe there is some consistence between talk and action, in the US they usually do the opposite of what they recommend for others.
And, by the way, the per capita growth rate for Germany in a link Jerome a Paris provided the German per capita growth for 2006 and 2007 was understated. I'm curious for 2008, but if German per capita growth will be higher in 08 than the French one, I would think that real conservative policy has done a good job.

Der Amerikaner ist die Orchidee unter den Menschen
Volker Pispers