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Europe will suffer a deeper and longer recession than previously predicted, according to the European Commission.

Both EU and eurozone economies are expected to contract by 4.0% this year, the commission said.

That will lead to 8.5 million Europeans getting the axe, pushing the eurozone jobless rate to 11.5% by 2011 and 10.9% in the EU.

The European Commission downgraded its UK forecasts for this year and next - expecting output to shrink by 3.8% in 2009 before edging just 0.1% ahead in 2010.

The Europe-wide prediction is much worse than the commission's previous forecast.

It said in January that the eurozone economy would shrink by 1.9% and the EU economy by 1.8%.

"The European economy is in the midst of its deepest and most widespread recession in the post-war era," EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said.

The commission said the recession would last well into the second half of 2010.

Germany, Europe's biggest economy, is likely to see a contraction of 5.4% as demand for German exports dry up.

But Latvia is set for an even worse fall, its economy shrinking by 13.1%.

The once-booming Irish economy can expect a 9% dip.

Referring to Britain, its forecasts say "the likelihood that economic activity in 2010 will be weaker than envisaged by the UK authorities" will add to a "very significant" deterioration in the public finances.

UK unemployment is also set to rise to around 10% of the workforce - three million people - by late 2010, the commission said.

The commission's forecast is not as pessimistic as that of the International Monetary Fund which said eurozone GDP would fall by 4.2% this year.

The European Central Bank put the figure at 3.8%.