Conservatives react to ‘Debt Fuelled Binge’ Comprehensive Spending Review

York’s Conservatives have criticised Labour’s spending review which is seeing government debt get increasingly out of control. This year the deficit has increased and debt will hit an incredible 96% of GDP. Whilst Labour talk about interest rates falling they are dammed by the facts that under them 30 year gilt yields have risen from 4.7% to 5.4%, meaning billions more in interest payments and inflation has risen from 2% when they took power to 3.5% now.

Sorting through the cliches and specific spending commitments in marginal constituencies, that should not be announced in such a statement, it is incredible how much is being spent to achieve so little, but on the supposed specifics:

1. It already looks like what constitutes defence spending is being distorted to enable Labour to claim it is meeting its defence spending as a percentage of GDP claims
2. We welcome the affordable housing financing but Labour has shown no evidence that it has the competence to make it work, with housebuilders unable to get skilled workers, hit by the NI increase an Labour well behind its housebuilding targets
3. In York there is nothing new announced. Whilst York got a mention this is simplifying reannouncing funding for rail infrastructure that was announced by the previous government. We are no nearer more A64 dualling, the northern ring road remains stalled due to the Labour council and Haxby station would perhaps be better as an airport given under Labour it remains totally up in the air.
4. The ‘savings’ look optimistic to save the least – for example cutting consultants when every aspect of government shows Labour loving to spend more on consultants than anyone else. The sale of government buildings is simply selling the family silver.

Conservative Group Leader Chris Steward said 

After the dramatic u-turn on Winter Fuel for pensioners, at a cost of £1.25 billion, Labour are now tearing up any claims of financial prudence. They have smashed businesses and residents with higher taxes with an inevitable negative effect on the economy, now they are going for broke on spending. Rachel Reeves rewrote her own ‘golden rules’ on borrowing and is now creating a debt spital which only worsen.

We have long known that Labour is a party at war with itself, it may be jumping around policy wise with one u-turn after another but now it is going back to what it knows best and seeing debt rise, economic growth decline and unemployment increasing.