UNITED KINGDOM: POLITICS - Shadow foreign secretary and labour party leader candidate David Miliband assails spending cuts
Record ID:
189872
UNITED KINGDOM: POLITICS - Shadow foreign secretary and labour party leader candidate David Miliband assails spending cuts
- Title: UNITED KINGDOM: POLITICS - Shadow foreign secretary and labour party leader candidate David Miliband assails spending cuts
- Date: 19th August 2010
- Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (AUGUST 18, 2010) (REUTERS) WIDE OF EXTERIOR OF PARLIAMENT FLAG EXTERIOR OF BUILDING HOLDING LABOUR PARTY LEADER CANDIDATE, DAVID MILIBAND'S OFFICE SIGN READING: "SMITH SQUARE" (*** FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY ***) MILIBAND WALKING INTO ROOM (SOUNDBITE) (English) LABOUR PARTY LEADER CANDIDATE DAVID MILIBAND SAYING: "I think that the coalition government have been risky, dangerously risky where they needed to show calm judgment, I'm thinking of the economy and their plans for the health service. And I think they have been weak and incoherent were they needed to be bold, I'm thinking of the green agenda for example or on crime and security where the tensions in the coalition have been much clearer. My hundred day verdict would be risky where they needed to be careful and confused where they needed to be bold." MILIBAND TALKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) LABOUR PARTY LEADER CANDIDATE, DAVID MILIBAND SAYING: "You don't have to ask me about that, in the governments own documents their fan chart show that there is a danger and my view in that the Tories, the governments own measures are making that danger more likely." MILIBAND'S HAND (SOUNDBITE) (English) LABOUR PARTY LEADER CANDIDATE, DAVID MILIBAND SAYING: "He is imposing a bank levy of 0.7-percent of the balance sheet and that is by no means a big hit on the banks. There is no point in hitting the banks just for the sake of hitting the banks. We need a strong financial services sector in this country. It is important though that the financial services sector is a financial capital for the British economy and not just the world economy. And I have said rather than slash the capital allowances which are so important for the manufacturing industry and the industry of the future if you double the bank levy you wouldn't have to abolish capital allowances for manufacturing. And I dont' just talk about balancing the economy between the financial services and the rest I actually show how it can be done." MILIBAND SITTING AND TALKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) SHADOW FOREIGN SECRETARY AND LABOUR PARTY LEADER CANDIDATE, DAVID MILIBAND SAYING: "I think that we are determined not, I mean family come before politics, family is for life and forever really and so and it very very important that the family is not undermined by this and I think the way that the contest has been conducted means that, that is going to happen." MILIBAND AND REUTERS JOURNALIST TALKING
- Embargoed: 3rd September 2010 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: United Kingdom
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Domestic Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA215YW9MXZVGKLRNC0UBFK5YPM
- Story Text: The frontrunner in the race to lead Britain's opposition Labour Party said on Wednesday (August 18) the ruling coalition's spending cuts risked pushing Britain into a double-dip recession.
David Miliband, foreign minister until an election in May ended 13 years of Labour rule, also pledged to double a tax on banks.
Miliband is favourite in the betting to be the centre-left party's next leader after former prime minister Gordon Brown resigned after losing the election.
Britain has its first coalition since 1945 after an election in May threw the centre-right Conservatives into an unlikely embrace with the leftist Liberal Democrats.
The Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition, headed by Prime Minister David Cameron, has pledged deep cuts in public spending to rein in a record peacetime budget deficit, which Cameron blames on Labour profligacy.
Miliband said the coalitions first 100 days in office showed it to be risky where "calm judgment" was needed.
"I think that the coalition government have been risky, dangerously risky where they needed to show calm judgment, I'm thinking of the economy and their plans for the health service. And I think they have been weak and incoherent were they needed to be bold, I'm thinking of the green agenda for example or on crime and security where the tensions in the coalition have been much clearer. My hundred day verdict would be risky where they needed to be careful and confused where they needed to be bold," he said.
The government has asked departments to plan for spending cuts of up to 40 percent. Details will be announced in October.
Miliband said government documents showed there was a danger that the British economy, emerging from a severe slowdown, could plunge back into recession.
"You don't have to ask me about that, in the governments own documents their fan chart show that there is a danger and my view in that the tories, the governments own measures are making that danger more likely," he said.
Miliband stands by the proposal Labour fought the election on -- halving the deficit in four years. The coalition aims to cut the deficit to almost nothing in five years.
Miliband proposes to double a 2 billion pound (3.13 billion US dollars) annual tax on banks introduced by the coalition -- a move to make banks contribute to reducing the deficit after several of them had to be rescued during the financial crisis.
He said this would enable the government to avoid cuts in tax breaks for business investment announced by finance minister George Osborne in an emergency budget in June.
"He is imposing a bank levy of 0.7-percent of the balance sheet and that is by no means a big hit on the banks. There is no point in hitting the banks just for the sake of hitting the banks. We need a strong financial services sector in this country. It is important though that the financial services sector is a financial capital for the British economy and not just the world economy. And I have said rather than slash the capital allowances which are so important for the manufacturing industry and the industry of the future if you double the bank levy you wouldn't have to abolish capital allowances for manufacturing. And I don't just talk about balancing the economy between the financial services and the rest I actually show how it can be done," Miliband said Miliband faces competition from four other contenders, including his brother Ed, also a former cabinet minister. He said he was determined his rivalry with his younger brother Ed would not cause family strains.
"I think that we are determined not, I mean family come before politics, family is for life and forever really and so and it very very important that the family is not undermined by this and I think the way that the contest has been conducted means that, that is going to happen," Miliband said.
The other candidates are Ed Balls and Andy Burnham, both ministers under Brown, and member of parliament Diane Abbott. The winner is due to be announced on Sept. 25 after a long campaign and voting by party members and supporters. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None