Public Spending: Inheritance Debate

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Department: HM Treasury

Public Spending: Inheritance

Earl Attlee Excerpts
Tuesday 30th July 2024

(3 months, 3 weeks ago)

Lords Chamber
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Lord Livermore Portrait Lord Livermore (Lab)
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As my noble friend perhaps did not acknowledge, this is not an easy decision and I understand why there is disappointment about it, but it is the right decision in the circumstances. The level of overspend we inherited is simply not sustainable. Left unaddressed, it would have meant a 25% increase in the Government’s financing needs this year, so it falls on this Government to take the difficult decisions to make the necessary in-year savings.

Earl Attlee Portrait Earl Attlee (Con)
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My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Boateng, correctly drew attention to our productivity problems. How much scope does the Minister think there is for improving our productivity? There are, obviously, the welcome planning reforms but how far does he think he can improve our productivity in percentage terms, and to what timescale?