Oh yes, there will be spending cuts, and they’ll have to be big. That’s something CoffeeHousers knew already, of course – but it’s a message which is worth repeating if our country’s going to have anything like a chance of overcoming Brown’s debt crisis. So bravo to this morning’s Guardian, which spells it out in a public spending special*. They’ve got the IFS on board to describe how we’ll need 16 percent cuts across all departments if the two main parties commit to ringfencing health, education, overseas aid, defence etc. There’s a survey of the views of certain think-tanks, consultancies and policy wonks. And interviews with four former Chancellors – Lawson, Howe, Healey and Lamont – who also set out the case for cuts.
It’s all worth reading. But perhaps the most striking passage comes in Nicholas Watt’s interview with Lord Lawson:
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