Oral answer to question provided on Thursday, 8 April 2010 in the House of Lords, by Lord Myners (Labour).

Government Borrowing

Answer: The noble Lord, Lord Oakeshott, makes an extremely good point, as he so frequently does on these matters. The flip-flopping of the Conservative Party on economic matters is a wonder to behold. Its concern about cutting taxation is a relatively new one, driven perhaps by the necessity of the moment, but we will remember how clearly we were being prepared for an age of austerity until it became evident that that political message was not receiving the outcome that the Conservative Party sought. There is a real inconsistency in almost everything that the Conservatives say about the economy, and that, no doubt, will be rumbled when the electorate come to vote.

This is an answer to the Oral question asked on Thursday, 8 April 2010 by Lord Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay (Liberal Democrat).

Question: My Lords, two weeks ago the Conservatives rubbished the Government’s claim in the Budget that they were going to make £11 billion of efficiency savings. Days later they produced £13 billion of their own efficiency savings. Is this not a total insult to our intelligence? Is it not deeply dishonest to claim that you are serious about cutting the deficit when you are making spending commitments all over the place, as the Conservatives are, with no idea how they are going to pay for them?

Secondary information