Put your questions to George Osborne

Tiberius

I understand the reasons for not committing to upfront tax cuts, but there are bound to be some savings available from reform.

Do you have any idea at this stage how much could be available, and where would you seek to allocate any such savings?

CS

I'd be interested to hear Mr Osborne's views on the use of differently patterned wallpaper above and below a dado rail.

Guido Fawkes

Are you happy with the way the voice coaching has gone?

Tim

Did Ian Austin tell you to "F**k off you toff"?

Surrey Boy

If the Conservative Party is now against any further airport expansion, what will he do about Heathrow, given its runways are 99% full?

Stuart Mark Turner

Dear Sir,

Would you agree that your pledge at last year's Conservative conference, subsequently copied by Labour to add an additional tax to non-domiciles. Would be damaging to our economy at a time when foreign companies are already relocating away from our shores.

Buckinghamshire Tory

It is becoming more and more likely that the next government of our country will be a Conservative government, with David Cameron as Prime Minister, and yourself as Chancellor of the Exchequer. How will you balance strict fiscal discipline (since the public finances probably will be in a mess), with the desire for tax cuts (which is wanted by much of the electorate, and most of the Party)?

Patrick, London

How profound are your ambitions to cut state spending really? Would you agree that 30% of GDP is quite enough thank you very much?

Nicholas

I thought the Brown Annual Report was brilliant but it has been little reported. In PMQs Brown constantly reels off examples of Conservative opposition to public sector investment. What is the Conservative strategy for making sure the government's outrageous budget waste (quangos, higher input than output, quantity not quality, etc.) gets more exposure in the media and that the public really understand the issues?

Tom

In an ideal world, what do you think the Governemnt's tax take as a percentage of GDP?

What do you think the threshold tax level should be for low income individuals?

Richard Nabavi

Given that economic prospects have deteriorated considerably in recent months, do you think that the government's taxation and spending plans for the next three years are sustainable, or will both now have to be changed?

Austen

What will the Conservative attitude to public services be? Everyone agrees that state monopoly isn't the answer. But what is? Is it to be a question of handing them over to the voluntary sector who often don't have the skills and experience but, thanks to low wages and chaitible donations, could well be cheap?

Sky Blue Peter

As a neighbour (in constituency terms) of the Wintertons, are you ashamed of their brazen exploitation of expenses, are you aware of the damage they and others like them do to the image of the party, and what do you propose to do about it?

thomas

Wouldn't a cut in the licence fee be a very easy way to immediately contribute relief to struggling families' economic commitments?

William Norton

You've committed the Conservatives to Labour's expenditure plans as set out in the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review. Does this include the budgets for the Olympics (Annex D14) and Regional Development Agencies (Annex D19)?

GS London

What are the realistic possibilities of a flat-rate taxation system? If not, please explain why not, and, failing that, would a conservative government make effort to drastically reduce the complexity in current taxation?

Alan Phillips

Polycell or Solvite?

What are his views on incorperating with the DVLA's Road Tax, the possiblity of having a MOT and Insurance Disc to sent at the same time, making not road leagal cars immediately recognisable. They know this info already but choose not to do anything with it.

I can only thing that Brown and co are happy for all cars (legal or not)to be on the road buying fuel....

Damon

McCain or Obama?

gstewart

It looks as though the first term (at least) of the next Conservative Government will be spent pushing through a major reconstruction and rescue of the British economy. Can you outline some of the first steps you'll take.

Paul L

Given the growing impact of the credit crunch and the need to tighten our belts, can he reccomend an inexpensive but high quality wood-chip wallpaper?

M. onal

In your opinion, what are the 5 cardianl mistakes Labour has made with the economy since coming to power?

AND

Which of the upcoming Tory front and backbenchers are destined for the big offices?

Ruairidh

Technological advances offer opportunities and problems for law enforcement agencies. The latest example was back in May when the Times claimed the government planned a large database of call record information. A Tory administration will inherit many back ambitious and expensive projects like this, e-Borders and the DNA database. Will you continue with them or will you scrap them even if this represented a degradation of law enforcement capability?

salieri

Would you reverse Gordon Brown's calamitous pension fund raids? And if the answer is no, why not?

David Belchamber

Why is it that Labour supporters still get away with claims (as on QT on 3 July) that Labour is keeping inflation down to under 3.5%, while under the tories it went up to 15%?

Jim

Do you agree with empty industrial buildings now becoming liable for rates? This new proposal will cause a lot of damage to inward investment.

DM

Will you remove VAT from women's sanitary products?

Sean

Should schools and hospitals be allowed to maintain their charitable status?

oldtimer

Q1: What scope do you see for the simplification of taxes, with or without tax cuts, and will you be ready to announce/implement them quickly if/when you gain office?
Q2: What reforms/incentives do you believe will help to restore the savings ratio and re-introduce a savings culture in the UK.

Elizabeth Elliot-Pyle

Could you please tell us what is your party's position on the EU/Lisbon treaty??? Could you spell it out in words of one syllable, because we mere oiks cannot understand exactly what your party's position is?
Just think of all that money you would have to play with if we weren't paying so much to the EU.
This could be your only chance, given the dire state of the finances you will inherit.
PLEASE, please do something about the EU.

Will

George Osborne CV

Born May 1971, elder son of Sir Peter Osborne and heir to the Osborne and Little wallpaper fortune. Educated St Paul's School and Magdalen College, Oxford. Married to writer Frances Osborne with two children. Lives in Notting Hill.

CV: Conservative research department 1994-5. Special adviser at the Ministry of Agriculture (1995-7), then political secretary to the leader of the opposition and secretary to the shadow cabinet. June 2001, elected MP for Tatton. Became shadow Chancellor in 2005.

My question - In the 14yrs since leaving university you've worked solely for the Conservative Party, what exactly do you feel qualifies you to be in charge of the nation's purse?

Jonathan T

George,

What do you plan to do regarding unfunded public sector pensions?

Will you remove the defined benefit provision for current public sector employees and replace with defined contribution, as in the majority of the private sector?

Will you establish a fund to cover the liabilities of public sector pension provision, rather than relying on future taxpayers? (Perhaps put key infrastructure into such a fund and charge for its use?)

Best of luck in sorting out the fiscal shambles you will inherit in May 2010!

Andy

What about the Tories offering a sliding scale for petrol duty? As the price goes up, there is a commensurate reduction, and vice versa.

Simon Cawkwell

Dear Mr Osborne,

I attended a family taxation planning meeting yesterday and I opined that there was no chance of your honouring your £1m IHT exemption band promise since the nation's finances will be in such an unholy mess when you take over. However, please disabuse me/us if you will.

Yours,
Simon Cawkwell

Water

Out of all the financial debacles that Labour is responsible for of late which error do you distinguish as potentially being the most difficult to rectify?

Fergus Pickering

k-up amd/or stupid, which I don't think you are at all. Do you acknowledge it is a problem?

anthony

Don't just not implement the fuel duty rise, cut fuel duty - and not just by a few pence. Abolish the ludicrous HIPS, re-introduce MIRAS, promise a 3 year stamp duty holiday, make the rules for MPS's expenses the same as they are for every private sector employee. A few starters; if the pathetic Darling won't do them, start making some commitments that you will; and while you are at it tell him to tell Jacqui that the only way to deal with knife crime - and any other crime - is to depoliticise the police, get rid of the political correctness that stultifies them and impose Zero tolerance that means zero tolerance. Get rid of the Human Rights Act on Day 1. Sorry, I know you can't do it all but we are depending on you.

Ian C

It is clear that the social security and benefit systems has vast disincentives for those who are low-skilled and can only make minor provision for themselves, while being a tax on productive jobs created by employers with the incentives to employ only the low paid, who have marginal incentive to respond as above.

What combination of social, fiscal and cost cutting policies will be implemented to introduce the necessary incentives that will work while retaining the safety net intent of social security?

Will 'entitlements' to benefits provided by the state be funded or continued as pay-as-you go? If the latter, how is that going to be affordable with a shrinking workforce to retired population and a tax/NI system incentivising low paid jobs over higher added value employment?

PoliticiansStink

If you can't sort out financial impropriety within the six- hundred-odd MPs at Westminster, what hope have you of rescuing a country's economy?
What do the Conservatives plan to do to bring an end to MPs fleecing taxpayers with their unreasonable expenses, allowances etc.?

Alastair Harris

How do you intend to make the tax system simpler, and do you intend to reverse the Brownian blur of tax avoidance and tax evasion?

Napoleon

How can you say that Labour did a mess in the economy but still sign a compromise to follow Labour's spending?

Gideon Osborne

Looking at your CV what experiences and previous jobs are most relevant in preparing for the role of (possibly) being Chancellor.

David Preiser

As Chancellor, would you consider looking into a complete reworking of the way the BBC is funded by a tax, as well as the generous grants from other branches of government (i.e. the Foreign Office)? Would you consider the position that the BBC is too partisan in its reporting, and has so many channels and mainstream entertainment programmes that it no longer performs public service value equal to the money taken from the taxpayers, and is thus no longer worthy of its remit?

Diana

Labour often defends our membership of the EU by claiming x number of jobs in this country depend on us staying in.
How true is this?

Mark

The UK is now entering into a recession, if not a depression. As such tax revenues will fall. How can you say you will follow the current spending plans. In order to do so you will need to raise tax.

For a fuller argument see here:

http://cynicuseconomicus.blogspot.com/2008/06/funny-view-of-wealth.html

So what is it to be - raise taxes, cut services, or borrow more money? It will have to be one of the three...

Matt

The government's budget eats up approximately 46% of GDP in the UK, versus about 24% in Germany and 20% in the US. Do you feel this tax burden is too high? If so, where do you believe the most substantial cuts can be made?

Also, what is your position on the possibility of the UK joining the euro?

Tim Hedges

Don't you think 'sharing the proceeds of growth' is a New Labour sort of slogan, pretending that the State is entitled to its share and the people entitled to another share? It's all our money, isn't it?

GEG

With a history of panic reforms and copycat policies, are you reluctant to propose any new policies before 2010 for fear of our dear Darling pinching them?

Steven

How would a Conservative government seek to regain sovereignty from the EU? Is joing the North American Free Trade Area one option?

Pauline

Alternative or abolition of Council Tax.

TGF UKIP

Pete, assuming he is still in his job, which, as Dave's Best Mate he almost certainly will be, I have a five part question for Greedy Boy George:

1)Whenever you, or any of your colleagues, are interviewed and launch a major assault on Brown's tax, borrow, spend and bust policies you are inevitably punctured by Marr/Humphrys/Paxman etc with the simple, accurate and devasting riposte "But you have pledged to match Labour spending." Given the many entirely justified reasons Gordon and succeeding opinion polls have afforded you to legitimately depart from this spending burden why do you still maintain this pledge and its concomitant borrowing -£809bn 2012?

2) The nastiest and most class based of all Brown's stealth taxes is the AT LEAST 70% tax on Alternatively Secured Pensions (ASPs) on death post age 75 plus IHT giving an effective MINIMUM tax rate of 82%. Do you promise to remove this special tax of 70% and will your promised £1m IHT level apply to single and divorced people and will it include pension assets?

3) On QT on Thursday night last one of the loudest cheers was for condemnation of the banks for lending willing borrowers so much money. Your colleague the ever limp and lame Lansley could only venture the comment in response to this that the Government had borrowed lots as well. Why is it beyond you, Lansley and the rest of your feeble mob to make the far more damaging to the Government point, that it was G. Brown's Treasury which turned the money supply taps full on and that for every £100k lent by the banks in released equity and spent on cars, holidays, conservatories, holidays etc, £17,500 was paid over to Gordon via VAT. In short Britain's vast personal borrowing binge was one one vast stealth tax raising exercise via VAT.

4) One of the most shameful aspects of the Brown Cnancellorship and Premiership has been the quite deliberate underfunding of the Armed Forces. Even more shamefully, and to the visible embarrassment of Fox, who should long ago have resigned (or was that always your's and Dave's hidden intention?) you are at least imlicitly pledged to continue this underfunding. When, in the name of its focus groups, the Conservative Party lets down the Armed Forces in this way don't you feel at least a twinge of shame? No weasel words please.

5)In the recent YouGov poll only 35% indicated that they thought that the Cameron/Osborne Tories would handle Britain's problems better than Labour. In the days you are taking to respond to these questions could you please have your Office research the corresponding figure for the Blair/Brown Team pre '97. If there is a performance gap of more than, say, 10%, why do you think that is?

Munro Ross

Why did you vote against the fule tax regulator when it was debated last week? Was it simply because you diod not want to be supporting a long standing sNP policy?