Peter Hoskin

Advertising cuts

If you’re stuck for something to do during this sweltering afternoon, then it’s well worth flicking through David Cameron’s speech to the Local Government Association earlier.  Aside from a few mentions of handing “much more power” to local governments (which could be taken as merely transferring power from one bureaucracy to another), it’s a good example of how much more confident and clear the Tory message on spending cuts has become.  The passage which stands out – although it may not actually be the snappiest – is where Cameron draws a comparison with the private sector:

“Imagine if some of our biggest business brands followed the logic of our government.  These businesses spend their entire time trying to reduce costs in order to provide better value and a better service.

Imagine if they just adopted the idle and outdated logic of Gordon Brown and said that every cost reduction must inevitably lead to a cut in front line services.Think of the commercials they would have to run on the logic of what the government tells us.

‘Good food costs more at Sainsbury’s’.

‘At Tesco every little bit doesn’t so much as help – in fact it’d be a 10 per cent cut in the quality of the food’.

Asda wouldn’t boast ‘permanently low prices’ – but ‘permanently more and more cuts in quality and service’.” Like I said, I don’t think Cameron has given particularly snappy examples, but he’s still mining a rich seam here.  CoffeeHousers often comment on how Brown’s claims and actions just wouldn’t be countenanced in the private sector (or in the realm of common sense), and this makes a similar point. 

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