European Central Bank board member Juergen Stark said euro zone countries need to cut public spending to 30-35 pct of GDP if they are to be competitive. "If Europe wants to be dynamic and competitive in the 21st century, then it needs a well functioning market economy that is able to adapt quickly to change. But it is not clear that we can have such an economy while the state continues to absorb almost half of the economy's resources," he said in a speech. Public spending accounted for 47.6 pct of GDP in the euro zone in 2005, and in France and Belgium the figure was above 50 pct, Stark noted. "There are increasingly signs that such high levels of spending can have detrimental medium and long-term economic effects especially on growth and fiscal sustainability," he said. He said government spending of 30-35 pct of GDP should be enough to achieve core social and economic objectives, address new challenges and maintain a high quality of life This would in turn enable governments to cut taxes. "We should have reasonably low taxes that allow us to remain globally competitive, not only to keep our capital but also a motivated and dynamic work force," he said. Stark said some European countries could become "economic dinosaurs" if they fail to implement ambitious spending reforms.