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We will make cuts but not to front-line services, says Brown
Joe Murphy and Nicholas Cecil15 Sep 2009
Gordon Brown declared himself to be a cutter today — and took a symbolic axe to the generous early retirement scheme for senior civil servants.
Standing in front of the Trades Union Congress, the Prime Minister was planning to use freely the “C-word” that until today had been outlawed from the Labour lexicon.
But Tory claims that the PM would perform a humiliating U-turn and admit a need for deep spending reductions were not to be realised. Instead Mr Brown was saying that he would cut “low-priority budgets” and waste.
And he was planning to launch a major attack on the Conservatives whom he said would slash frontline public services.
“Labour will cut costs, cut inefficiencies, cut unnecessary programmes and cut low-priority budgets,” Mr Brown was due to say, according to a draft seen by the Standard.
“But when our plans are published in the coming months, people will see that Labour will not support cuts in the vital front-line services on which people depend.”
Mr Brown was making an eye-catching announcement designed to symbolise his determination to pare back costs while avoiding areas such as health and education budgets.
He will save £500 million over three years by abandoning Whitehall's early exit programme for top civil servants.
Officials say the scheme, which lets mandarins quit in their 50s, often costs up to six times as much as simply paying their salaries until they retire at the standard Whitehall age of 60.
The Tories claimed Mr Brown had been dragged kicking and screaming into agreeing the need for cuts, no matter who wins the next election.
In a speech in London, shadow chancellor George Osborne claimed: “The Conservatives are on the verge of a historic political victory. Sooner or later Gordon Brown will have to hoist the white flag and actually say that public spending has to be cut.
“The biggest capitulation in recent British political history is coming and it's coming from Gordon Brown.”
Mr Osborne said Mr Brown's attempts to stick to Labour's previous election themes of “cuts versus investment” had made him “increasingly isolated and ridiculous”.
“This has been one of the longest and most hard-fought battles in recent British political history,” he went on.
But Mr Brown will say to the unions: “The choice is between a Conservative Party which would reduce public services at the very time they are needed most, make across-the-board public spending cuts to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy few, and make different choices about public services because they have different values.
“These would be the wrong choices at the wrong time for the wrong reasons because they have the wrong priorities for Britain.” But voters could stick with Labour who would not risk the recovery and would protect and improve public services, promising to be “the right choice for low and middle income families”.
Big front-line cuts would risk a double-dip recession, he will say, because the recovery was “fragile, not automatic” and homes and savings were still “hanging in the balance”.
Mr Brown suffered a fresh blow with a Populus poll for The Times showing that nearly half of voters believe that “literally anyone” from Labour would do a better job than Gordon Brown as party leader.
Reader views (13)
A recent poll saw 85% agree with the 'anyone but Gordon Brown' whan asked who should be running the country. I guess that will be 90% now.
- Paul, London, 16/09/2009 08:59
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After so many false statements, after so many wrong predictions, after so much obfuscation, after so much bullying beats me how anybody can believe a word Brown says.
- Bingham Macnamara, lymington, hampshire, 15/09/2009 16:00
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Is this one of his "0% growth" quotes?
These people are running around like headless chickens.
- Frank, Home Counties, England., 15/09/2009 15:31
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One of the key problems is that even before the current crisis, was that the budget deficit was dangerously high – caused by an every increasing public sector (both in terms of numbers as well unit wage costs) and over optimistic growth forecasts. For the last 30 of so years this country has been financed by the twin pillars of the City and North Sea oil. Now the City is in serious trouble and the oil is running out. Now that we have had/ are having the current crisis, the problem is greatly amplified. The old answer from the left of tax the rich will not work, because capital and people are more mobile than ever before, and they will/are leaving. The same is true for companies – how many companies have left the UK in the last 2 years ? We (and the unions) have to accept that we have to live within our means. Finally, it is no use the Unions (who mostly represent the Public Sector) now complaining that the Public are paying for failure in the private sector, because it is the private sector that pays for the public sector.
- Very Very Angry At Paying Tax For Mp'S Expeses, Home Counties, 15/09/2009 15:10
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Gordon Brown a month ago: Tory cuts versus Labour investments...blablabla
Gordon Brown today: We are investing in cuts in public services, like we said we'd do.
- Edward Perry, London, UK, 15/09/2009 14:26
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The pension scheme change being suggested for senior civil servants is because they have exactly the same scheme in place that Fred Goodwin benefited from. Whether right or wrong, he must wonder how Ministers took him so dangerously to 'the court of public opinion'.
- Peter Bench, London, 15/09/2009 14:13
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you have to assume that if he is only thinking about cutting "waste and uneccessary programmes" that we have had over 12 years of wasted money and completely uneccessary projects and quangos wasting our money. Thanks Gordon - good to see you are actually considering some sort of cost benefit excericise with our money after 12 years...
- Mr Opinion, london, 15/09/2009 13:14
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"the (Civil Service)scheme, that lets mandarins quit in their 50s, often costs up to six times as much as simply paying their salaries until they retire at the standard Whitehall age of 60"
So typical of Gordon Brown and his "gesture politics". If he was serious about cutting Civil Service waste he'd actually ask (1)why should we (the taxpayer) "continue paying their salaries until they retire" AND (2) why is the "standard retirement age" in Whitehall still 60, when private sector employees are having to work to 65 and beyond, with NO gold plated Final Salary scheme even then??
As always, Gordon demonstrates his lack of understanding of the real world the rest of us live in.
- Malcolm, London, 15/09/2009 12:59
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So as always, we are still none the wiser. What else is Brown going to cut? I think we are all grown up enough to know that substantial cuts are needed...and we are all grown up to know exactly what is going to be cut.
- Rob Sloan, Warwick, UK, 15/09/2009 12:54
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Bail out the banks, do nothing about bankers and stock traders pay....but talk big about spending cuts that affects us the hard working tax paying population who find it so hard to pay the bills. Isn't it time we kicked this lunatic out of parliament?
- Alex Gordon, Glasgow,UK, 15/09/2009 12:51
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Old Labour intellectual, Anthony Crosland, once told the Public Sector Unions: "The party is over...". He was correct, then, and David Cameron will drive home this robust message just as soon as the bottler-in-charge calls a General Election.
- Ted, London, 15/09/2009 10:30
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"PM expected to admit spending 'cuts' are needed"
Or more realistically, "PM expected to state the bloody obvious".
- Bob, Cheam, 15/09/2009 09:16
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No cuts you said Mr Brown??
Now we have the union wanting to protect the public sector workers by announcing strikes if people lose there jobs, yet in the private sector we are losing jobs everyday.
Get real Mr union people, we cannot afford to keep people in employement if there is no work??
The public sector have had it too easy for too long.
Welcome to the real world!!!
- C Cusano, Bedford, 15/09/2009 08:54
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