Spending Review: All in it together? Not according to the data
During his Spending Review speech George Osborne made much of the fairness of his announcements. He also repeated what has now become a cringing cliche: that we are “all in it together”.
George Osborne
Those departmental cuts in full
Those departmental cuts in full
Spending Review: George Osborne’s pensions conundrum
The government – correction, any future government – is facing an increasing conundrum over what to do about pensions. Despite the hoo ha over today’s Spending Review, the announcements the chancellor will make today will only apply to a small proportion of total spending.
Across the nations the message is clear – It’s time for the chancellor to change course
Ahead of the chancellor publishing the Spending Review, the likes of which he never intended to make, across the nations the devolved governments are clear.
It’s not that the cuts aren’t deep enough already, it’s that the economy has barely grown
The chancellor will announce £11.5 billion pounds worth of cuts today because the UK economic recovery is the slowest for 100 years.
Public sector borrowing higher this year than last
The latest public sector finances data, released today by the Office for National Statistics, show that public sector borrowing in 2012/13 was £118.8 billion when you exclude Quantitative Easing and Royal Mail pensions. Higher than in 2011/12, when it was £118.5 billion.
‘Enough is enough’ – Wales’s message to Osborne
In the latest instalment of Labour’s on-going expectation’s management effort to level with the public about what it can and can’t achieve in such a difficult financial environment, Carwyn Jones who, as first minister of Wales remains the leader of the only Labour government in the country, has warned of further cuts to come to unprotected budgets.
With its intellectual justification in tatters, this government’s policy must change direction before it’s too late
The policy of austerity is finally dying with Europe and even the monetarist IMF realising their folly recently. With its intellectual justification in tatters this government’s economic policies must change right now.
Ring-fencing the NHS and schools is no longer viable
The chancellor went on the Today programme this morning to trumpet his success in getting seven government departments to agree on their budgets for 2015-16 as part of the Spending Review that he will announce on 26 June. It is reported that they have all agreed to cuts of between 8 and 10 per cent.
Disposable income hits 12-month low
The average weekly disposable income has fallen to a 12-month low, the second consecutive year-on-year decline in two months, according to Asda.