Spending Review Debate

Full Debate: Read Full Debate
Department: HM Treasury

Spending Review

Baroness Hodge of Barking Excerpts
Wednesday 26th June 2013

(11 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Baroness Hodge of Barking Portrait Margaret Hodge (Barking) (Lab)
- Hansard - -

The Chancellor said that one of the objectives of his statement today was to stimulate growth, and he announced £50 billion of investment in 2015-16. In 2009-10, this country spent £48.4 billion in cash terms. Will he now accept that that 2015-16 figure represents a real-terms cut in investment?

George Osborne Portrait Mr Osborne
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I inherited from the last Chancellor a plan greatly to reduce capital spending—to cut it by 50%. In the 2010 review, we increased it from the plans we inherited. We increased it in the years since, and now we are maintaining it in the years going forward and setting it out for the rest of the decade. So the big reduction in capital spending that the right hon. Lady refers to is one I guess she must have supported, because she was a Minister of that Government.