Christopher Pincher
Main Page: Christopher Pincher (Independent - Tamworth)Department Debates - View all Christopher Pincher's debates with the HM Treasury
(14 years ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Mr Osborne
The reason we are in a different situation is not just because we have a different currency; it is because we have a Government who have put our public finances in order.
Christopher Pincher (Tamworth) (Con)
We are in a very different situation from Ireland. In the past several months, our long-term interest rates have fallen materially, whereas those of Ireland and other parts of the eurozone have not. Will my right hon. Friend remind those on the Opposition Benches—and particularly on the Opposition Front Bench—why that is so?
Mr Osborne
That is absolutely the case. Back in May, the largest bond investor in the world said that sterling was sitting on a “bed of nitroglycerine”. That was the kind of sentiment out there in the markets. We have taken—[Interruption.] The speculators? The Labour party literally believes that it can defy the bond market. That is what Labour Members are reduced to—that is where their policy review is leading them. I have to say that it is not a credible economic policy for this country.