Lord Sharkey
Main Page: Lord Sharkey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Sharkey's debates with the HM Treasury
(11 years, 10 months ago)
Lords ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Lord Sassoon
My Lords, the debt figures that the noble Lord, Lord Barnett, recited precisely illustrate the structural deficit challenge that we inherited from the previous Government. We have already reduced the current budget deficit from 11% to 8% of GDP in two years, but there is much more to do, and we will do it. We will be reducing borrowing by £155 billion a year by 2016-7, compared to what it otherwise might have been under another Government. We will keep on with that task.
Lord Sharkey
My Lords, the Oxfam report, The Perfect Storm, published two weeks ago, says:
“The combination in the UK of economic stagnation and public spending cuts is causing substantial hardship to people living in poverty”.
In view of this, could the Minister tell the House what plans the Government have in place to mitigate the effects of their deficit reduction programme on our most deprived groups and communities?