Darling defends spending
ALISTAIR Darling yesterday defended the use of a fiscal stimulus to ride out the economic downturn.
He reiterated that the government had no intention of cutting off the economy any time soon, despite a ballooning budget deficit.
“We and all the other countries are doing the same thing, we’re putting money into our economy to support our economy and to take it out prematurely, not to have done so would have been utter madness,” he said on the BBC Politics Show.
The comments were seen as an attempt to contrast the government’s stance with the Conservatives’ spending plans, but also fuelled speculation that the chancellor might use the Pre-Budget Report next month to announce further stimulus measures. Last month’s shock GDP figures, which showed the economy in recession in the third quarter, prompted calls for a further spending boost.