Los Angeles 10/21/2010 5:38:37 PM
News / Politics

No Plan ‘B’ For UK Spending Review

Chancellor of the Exchequer in the UK, George Osborne has said there is no plan ‘B’ for the extensive list of spending cuts he has unveiled for the British government.

The Institute for Fiscal Services has said that the reviews may severely reduce the quantity and quality of public services, and has urged Osborne to review the program and consider putting money back into such services.  Osborne has responded that there is no plan ‘B’ should the scale and speed of the deficit reduction scheme run into to trouble in the future, belying a high level of confidence in the "hard but fair choices" which were unveiled in the nations spending review.

Osborne has cut a staggering 81 billion pounds from government spending, with areas such as welfare, social housing, higher education and local government most affected. Defense spending has also been slashed, which has worried onlookers in the US as well.

Labour has denounced the government’s radical cutbacks as “regressive” saying that they will undoubtedly hurt the poor vastly more than the rich as spending has been cut largely from social welfare programs.

Speaking to BBC radio, Osborne commented:

"People in the Labour party keep saying: 'Where's your plan B?' I've got a plan A ... This country didn't have any plan at all in a few months ago. We have got the plan. We have got some fiscal credibility out there in the world. We've created a platform for economic stability, dealt with this huge budget deficit problem with a measured plan that takes place over four years."