Budget 2015: Labour to adopt harder line on deficit to distance party from Ed Miliband era

Rachel Reeves, the shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, has said that Labour should set a target date for getting national debt back to its 40 per cent of GDP level before the 2007 financial crisis. It stands at more than 80 per cent today, so halving it would imply huge spending cuts.

Ms Reeves, who has been tipped to become shadow Chancellor if the front-runner Andy Burnham wins the Labour leadership contest, said: “We will need to be clearer than we were at the last election about a timetable for getting the deficit down.” She added: “The approach Labour committed to before the election would have seen debt still above 65 per cent [of GDP] in 2030.”

Labour has already ditched Mr Miliband’s plan to raise the top rate of income tax from 45p to 50p on incomes over £150,000 and his proposed mansion tax on homes worth more than £2m.

In her first comments since having her second baby, Ms Reeves backed George Osborne’s proposed law saying the Government should run a budget surplus in good economic times. “Labour should commit to run a surplus when the economy is growing at or above its normal level, allowing us to bring the debt down more quickly,” she said.

Tortured_Genius wrote:Wow - over a year without the faecal matter hitting the fan for Labour, and now: Sir Keir Starmer cleared by police over Durham lockdown beers (BBC)

Labour - at least we aren't sexual predators and lying criminals has a ring to it for the next election, but I suspect they won't go with it.

Westminster Voting Intention:

LAB: 45% (+2)
CON: 31% (-4)
LDM: 11% (=)
SNP: 5% (+2)
GRN: 2% (=)

Via @Survation 6 Jul. Changes w/ 27 Jun.

ronmcd wrote:
No doubt this will be the time for Labour to launch a disastrous bout of infighting, just as things are going their way.

ronmcd wrote:No doubt. Labour aren't helping themselves with their recent attack ads on Sunak, there's more than enough true stuff to attack the tories on without misleading attack ads.

SNP leader in the Commons Stephen Flynn asked Rishi Sunak whether he intends to "take the credit for convincing the leader of the Labour Party" to drop their pledge to scrap university tuition fees