Post date: Sep 30, 2013 2:42:4 PM
British finance minister George Osborne says will aim to return Britain to a budget surplus if theConservative Party wins the 2015 election.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (SEPTEMBER 30, 2013) (ITN) - British finance minister George Osborne said on Monday (September 30) he would aim to return Britain to a budget surplus if the Conservative Party wins the 2015 election and the country's economy continues to mend.
"Let us learn from the mistakes that got Britain into this mess. Let us vow -- never again. This time we are going to run a surplus. This time, we are going to fix the roof when the sun shines," Osborne told a Conservative Party conference in Manchester.In March, Britain's budget watchdog forecast that the public sector budget would be in surplus from the 2016-17 fiscal year, based on the government's preferred measure of the deficit.
The minister criticised proposals by the opposition Labour party to cap utility bills, saying they would prompt companies to raise prices before any limit was imposed and hit investment over the longer term.
"Companies would just jack up their prices before the freeze. So in the short term, prices go up. And companies will not invest in this country and build the power stations we need, so in the long term, prices go up," he said.
"So that's Labour's offer -- get hammered with high prices now, get hammered with high prices later. Higher energy prices for all. Don't worry, there would be a phoney price freeze on prices somewhere in between. How should I put it? Britain can do better than that," Osborne said.
The minister told the conference he wanted to freeze the duty on fuel for the rest of the current parliament, due to end in 2015.
"We have cut fuel duty, abolished Labour's fuel escalator. And I can tell you today provided we can find the savings to pay for it. I want to freeze fuel duty for the rest of this parliament."
Labour has criticised the government for not spending more on infrastructure projects as a way to help the economy out of its post-recession stagnation, although a recovery has accelerated in recent months.
Osborne said it was important to distinguish between day-to-day spending, including welfare expenditure, and longer-term investment on infrastructure.
"So we should commit alongside to running a surplus and capping welfare to grow our capital spending at least in line with our national income. These principles will form the foundation of our public finance policy," he said.
By spending less on welfare and routine costs, a new Conservative government would pave the way for lower taxes, Osborne said.