EU to recommend more UK cuts

The draft, obtained by Reuters two days before publication, said the programme failed to guarantee Britain would meet a European Union deadline of 2014-15 for cutting the deficit to below the bloc's cap of 3 percent of economic output.

"The overall conclusion is that the fiscal strategy in the convergence programme is not sufficiently ambitious and needs to be significantly reinforced," said the draft, expected to be approved by the Commission on Wednesday.

"A credible timeframe for restoring public finances to a sustainable position requires additional fiscal tightening measures beyond those currently planned," it said.

The government defended its budget plans in response to the leaked draft, saying they took into account a need to support the economy through the downturn.

The shadow chancellor, George Osborne, called the news "a heavy blow for (Prime Minister) Gordon Brown's credibility."

Britain's plan envisages cutting the gap to 4.7 percent of gross domestic product in the fiscal year 2014-15 from 12.1 percent planned for 2010-2011. That means it will fail to meet the deadline given by EU finance ministers late last year.

But even this target may be missed because British economic growth could turn out lower than the government expects, the draft said.

"The achievement of the consolidation forecast by the UK authorities, is further clouded by the likelihood that the macroeconomic context could be less favourable than envisaged by the authorities, as well as the uncertainties relating to the banking sector loans and investments insured by the government."

The programme forecasts economic growth at 2.0 percent in 2010-11 and then 3.3 percent each year until 2014-15.