Voters say spending cuts are inevitable whoever’s in power

A growing appetite among voters for tough action to rein in state spending was shown by an opinion survey that found four in five believe significant spending cuts will happen whoever wins the election.

A third believed cuts were the right policy to rebalance the public finances, while two-fifths said there should be a combination of cuts and tax increases. Only one in five believed that taxes should be increased to curb the need to borrow.

More evidence of the dangerous state of the public finances was revealed last night with figures showing that the Government's tax take plummeted by £32 billion last year. Revenue from income tax, national insurance, VAT, stamp duty, corporation tax and other levies plunged by £21.7 billion as the recession hit. Another £10 billion was wiped out by dubious debts and legal disputes over tax.

It was the most sudden drop in Exchequer revenues since 1923 and forced the Treasury to increase the record amounts it is having to borrow.

Official figures show Britain is selling £220 billion of gilts this year, four times the typical amount of the past four years.

Today's Populus poll in the Times delivered a major blow to Gordon Brown's election strategy of offering a choice between higher spending under Labour, with public service cuts under David Cameron.

Not only do voters think cuts are inevitable under both parties, but they have more trust in Mr Cameron to carry them out without harming key public services. Some 38 per cent trusted the Tory scalpel, compared with 28 per cent preferring Labour. Optimism about the economy has also fallen sharply over the past month. The proportion thinking the economy will do well rather than badly has dropped from 32 to 25 per cent, while the pessimists have grown from 63 to 73 per cent.

Adding to Mr Brown's woes, the poll confirmed that Labour is heading for a massive defeat in Thursday's crucial by-election in Norwich North. Nationally, the Conservatives were backed by 38 per cent while just 26 per cent backed Labour and 20 per cent backed the Liberal Democrats.

The Prime Minister has been warned by several Cabinet colleagues that voters are not convinced he can avoid cuts. Chancellor Alistair Darling argues that the election battle must be about competing priorities and values instead.

Last weekend, former Cabinet minister John Hutton warned that Mr Brown was "heading for trouble" unless he changed his message.