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Comprehensive Spending Review

Thanks to the stabilisation of the economy and the confidence that came with the new Government, we had second-quarter growth of 1.2 per cent and more than 300,000 new jobs. Lastly, whose policies are these and where is the endorsement coming from? The noble Lord talked about the interest bill, so perhaps I may put it to him this way. The day before the election, the Government of the United Kingdom were paying 96 basis points more than the German Government for 10-year money. That was the increment that we had to pay over what Germany was paying. As of the moment that the Chancellor sat down this afternoon, those 96 basis points had reduced to 56. That represents a saving on a daily basis of millions of pounds that eats into the £120 million daily bill of interest that the previous Government left us with.