Osborne stresses the need to talk honestly about cuts

George Osborne has accused Gordon Brown of “plain dishonesty” for trying to pretend that there won't be any spending cuts.

The Shadow Chancellor said it was "ridiculous" for Mr. Brown to claim that his plans to cut real spending on public services equate to ‘more Labour investment’ - and he told the Prime Minister to “tell the public the truth instead of treating them like fools”.

In an article in the Times, George stressed the “real dividing line” in British politics is “not ‘cut versus investment’, but honesty versus dishonesty”:

“Gordon Brown's claim that real spending will rise under Labour is akin to his claim that the 10p tax rise didn't hit the poor and that Alistair Darling is his first choice as Chancellor - it is just not true.”

George admitted that the Conservatives had initially “fought shy of using the ‘c’ word – cuts”, but stressed it was time to “talk honestly to the public about the spending decisions that need to be taken”:

“We should have the confidence to tell the public the truth that Britain faces a debt crisis; that existing plans show that real spending will have to be cut, whoever is elected; and that the bills of rising unemployment and the huge interest costs of a soaring national debt mean that many government departments will face budget cuts.”