In an interview with Andrew Neil, Liam Byrne MP (Chief Secretary to the Treasury) set the record straight in announcing that the government needed to half the deficit by £82 billion, and stated that the £19 billion that is currently accrued by taxes, is sufficient enough and that no further increase in tax is necessary. He spelled out that the remainder of the deficit will be cut through economic growth (£25 billion) and cuts in public spending. With a cool head he did not shy away from telling how tough it might be, and made a media-hyped sour pill a somewhat sweeter one to swallow indeed!

Liam Byrne on Thursday’s Daily Politics:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/dailypolitics/andrewneil/2010/03/byrne_set_tongues_wagging.html

Kieran