Oral Answers to Questions

Debbie Abrahams Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

Of course we want to ensure that we prolong the life of the North sea fields. One area on which we can work with the industry is ensuring greater certainty about decommissioning costs and about the tax regime that was operated under previous Governments and how that will apply over the next 10 years. I hope to work with the industry on that.

[Debbie Abrahams (Oldham East and Saddleworth) (Lab)]

9. If he will review the pace of proposed reductions in public expenditure to take into account GDP figures for the fourth quarter of 2010.

[The Chief Secretary to the Treasury (Danny Alexander)]

I welcome the hon. Lady to the House. The short answer to her question is no. Of course, growth in the final quarter of last year was disappointing, but, as we always said, the recovery in the early stages would be choppy. Deficit reduction is the essential precondition for growth, and the OBR’s November forecast stated that we would see growth in every year of the forecast.

[Debbie Abrahams]

Will the Chief Secretary explain to my constituents who are either unemployed or facing redundancy how his Government’s catastrophic economic policy is in the interests of the country? Clearly, we are not all in this together.

[Danny Alexander]

I hope the hon. Lady will take the opportunity to explain to her constituents that it is the legacy of the previous Labour Government that has caused the enormous mess and all the problems in our economy. They left us with the largest Budget deficit in Europe, and one of the largest in the world. Countries in our position have to take the sort of action we have taken, or risk being in a much deeper mess. If that is what she is advocating, I suggest she tells her constituents.