Posts Tagged ‘chancellor’

George Osborne has laid out some good starting points for determining and kick starting the road to economic recovery. His full lecture can be read in full at the end of this article and shows how detailed the shadow chancellor and his vision of the future is. As well as being a Parliamentary Candidate I am also a businessman so this makes vital reading for all business people.

Jim Ferguson

George Osborne delivers the annual Mais lecture

Wednesday, February 24 2010

Delivering the annual Mais lecture, Shadow Chancellor George Osborne set out the Conservative vision for a new economic model.

He argued that the debt-fuelled model of growth that the Government pursued over the last decade was fundamentally unsustainable, and that we need to move from an economy built on debt to an economy where we save and invest for the future. We have to deal with our debts to get the economy back on its feet.

He pointed to research which shows that the root cause of the economic crisis was an explosion of private sector debt, and that the biggest risk to the recovery is an explosion of public sector debt. High levels of public sector debt risk undermining growth.

He argued that the existing policy framework failed to prevent the crisis, is unable to deal with the current weakness of the economy, and won’t be able to stop it happening again. He set out a new economic model for growth based on saving and investment, and a new policy framework that can ensure that private and public debt are sustainable in the future, including:

· A new system of financial regulation, with the Bank of England back in charge of controlling the overall level of debt in the economy.

· A new fiscal policy framework, with an independent Office for Budget Responsibility to ensure that public debt is sustainable.

· A supply side revolution that releases the pent up enterprise and wealth creation of our country, encourages a nation of savers, and addresses long term structural weaknesses like poor education and a welfare system that traps people in workless poverty.

He also explained why the Government’s argument that we can afford to wait until 2011 before dealing with the deficit is complacent and puts the recovery at risk, and explained why we need to start dealing with the deficit in 2010:

· Confidence: a lack of confidence in the sustainability of the public finances is already undermining the recovery.

· The realities of markets: those who argue we should ignore financial markets are siren voices. If Britain loses the confidence of international markets the result would be emergency cuts that would indeed be swingeing and savage.

· The realities of Government: real public sector reform takes time so starting early on the deficit creates space for more targeted cuts that protect the poorest and front line services.

For the first time he also set out in detail how the budget process would work following the election in the event of a Conservative victory:

· Phase One: the independent Office for Budget Responsibility will set out an independent audit of the nation’s finances, based on independent growth forecasts. Only then will anyone know the true scale of the fiscal challenge that faces whoever forms the next government.

· Phase Two: an emergency budget within 50 days will set out the overall fiscal path and spending totals that we will stick to over the years ahead, as well as some of the cross-cutting measures on pay, the cost of Whitehall, the review of the pension age, and the largest public sector pensions, that will help to put our public finances on a sustainable footing. It will take targeted steps to reduce some budgets in-year in order to build credibility and make a start on reducing the deficit. Crucially, the first Budget will also contain measures to boost enterprise, encourage new jobs and show that Britain is open for business.

· Phase Three: over the Summer we will work flat out to conduct the detailed departmental Spending Review for the years after 2011 that the current government has simply refused to carry out, and publish that results of that review in the Autumn.

Read George’s Mais lecture in full

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Gordon Brown has denied ordering any briefing against his chancellor, after Alistair Darling said “the forces of hell” had been unleashed against him.

Mr Darling said No 10 and the Tories had given him “a weekend you could have done without” after he had forecast the worst recession for 60 years, in 2008.

But Mr Darling rejected suggestions he had been bullied by the prime minister.

And Mr Brown told GMTV he “would never instruct anybody to do anything other than support my chancellor”.

The PM, who again denied allegations of bullying, said he and Mr Darling and their families had been friends for 20 years and had “huge mutual respect”.

Mr Brown was speaking on Wednesday morning after Mr Darling’s comments in a Sky News interview on Tuesday evening.

A Conservative spokesman said: “The idea that Gordon Brown runs a happy and united team has been blown apart.

“This is amazing public confirmation from the prime minister’s own chancellor that he ordered his henchmen to brief against him.”

‘Still here’

In August 2008, Mr Darling caused a political uproar when he said economic conditions were “arguably the worst they’ve been in 60 years”.

I do not know why the briefers did what they did. One day maybe they will explain Alistair Darling

Following this, there were media reports that 10 Downing Street was unhappy with his analysis and his handling of the economy.

There were also suggestions Mr Darling might be reshuffled to make way for Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary and a close ally of Mr Brown.

Questioned by Sky News about the response to his comments, Mr Darling said that “the forces of hell were unleashed”.

And asked whether that had been orchestrated by 10 Downing Street, he said: “The Tories as well. It was a weekend you could have done without.

“I do not know why the briefers did what they did. One day maybe they will explain.

“What I do know is, unfortunately and it’s not a great source of pleasure, but what I said did turn out to be true.”

In an apparent reference to Mr Brown’s former spin doctor Damian McBride, the chancellor added: “Frankly, my best answer for them is, I’m still here, one of them is not.”

Mr McBride was forced to resign last year after a planned smear campaign against senior Conservatives emerged in leaked e-mails he had written.

‘Robust exchanges’

Asked about Mr Darling’s suggestions of a briefing campaign, the PM said: “I was never part of anything to do with this. Look, this was the most amazing time… and lots of things were happening in this time.

“But I would never instruct anybody to do anything other than support my chancellor, and I think Alistair will confirm that.”

Mr Darling rejected suggestions he had ever been bullied by Mr Brown, but said: “Of course, Gordon and I have some very robust exchanges.

“I can’t imagine any healthy relationship between a prime minister and a chancellor where they don’t have differences from time to time.”

He admitted there had been “some bad days” in his relationship with the prime minister but insisted there was more that united the two men than would “ever divide us”.

Mr Brown was also asked again whether he had bullied anyone: “No. I get angry sometimes, doesn’t everybody? I get impatient. I’m driven to do the things.

“Actually, we work in an open plan office, we’re a sort of family in Downing Street and like every family there’s issues that come from time to time, but we’ve got a great working environment and we get things done.”

Schools Secretary Ed Balls also told the BBC he did not “recognise this atmosphere” of alleged bullying at Number 10.

“Jeremy Heywood, who is the top civil servant, said the opposite was true – it was a friendly, caring, supportive environment. I think he is right,” Mr Balls said.

Mr Darling’s comments follow allegations in political journalist Andrew Rawnsley’s book that Mr McBride and Charlie Whelan, another Brown supporter, had been behind the briefing.

Both Mr McBride and Mr Whelan, a senior official with the Unite union, had their names put to the chancellor in the Sky News interview, but he did not refer to either directly.

I dont think there can be any doubt that Brown piled on the pressure to Darling when he came clean about the state of the economy. It seems that Brown the Bully and his past are indeed catching up with him and as they say the truth will be out.

If Brown was masterminding a campaign to undermine his own chancellor then what chance does the country have with such a divided and war torn Labour party savaging each other in such a bad tempered and aggressive way.

The sooner this discredited Labour Government is booted out of office the better.

Jim Ferguson

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