Brown pledges to help families

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With significant tax cuts expected in Monday's highly-anticipated Pre-Budget Report (PBR), the Prime Minister insisted the Government must step in to boost the economy.

"I know how worried many people are about their jobs, making ends meet at the moment and about the security of their homes," he wrote in the News of the World. "No politician can promise to stop the difficult times, but I can promise that we will do everything we can to help people get through them fairly. I want every household facing difficulty at this time to know we are ready to help and on their side."

There are predictions the Government could pump somewhere in the region of £15 billion into the economy in a Keynesian-style bid to spend Britain out of the downturn.

One of the main features of the PBR is expected to be tax cuts for the least well-off - especially those who have still not been compensated for their losses when the 10p lower rate of income tax was abolished.

There has also been speculation about a cut in Value Added Tax (VAT) to encourage purchasing.

Tory leader David Cameron has come out against the Government's proposed "fiscal stimulus" - higher spending funded by borrowing to spur the economy back to strength.

But Mr Brown attacked the Conservative "do nothing" approach, warning that failure to intervene only prolongs the pain of recession.

"If we do not act now, the downturn will be longer and more severe," he said. "A prolonged recession means people out of work for longer, more repossessions, and businesses taking longer to start growing again.

"We all remember what happened in the 1980s and 1990s when the Conservative Government sat on its hands and just let people fend for themselves. It took us years to recover and much of the damage could have been avoided had the Government stepped in to help people out. We will not repeat those mistakes."