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Pre-Budget Report

The hon. Gentleman will accept that a judgment has been made about the right level of deficit in the next financial year when the economy will still be growing at a rate below trend. In the subsequent year, there will be a sharp fiscal tightening, but that will be at a time when the economy will be growing at above trend. There is an element of judgment involved, and the Government have made a decision about the right level of deficit commensurate with the forecasted level of growth in the economy.