Britain would risk its economic stability if it watered down a programme of tax rises and public spending cuts aimed at reducing a record budget deficit, finance minister George Osborne said on Sunday. "That would be a huge mistake for this country," he said in an interview with the BBC.
"We would lose economic stability and we would be back in the mess of wondering what is going to happen tomorrow to Britain's credit rating. It is not going to happen.
"I can say in the Budget later this week I am not going to be asking for more tax increases or more spending cuts," Osborne added.
The government has staked its reputation on eliminating the budget deficit, which has swollen to 10 percent of GDP, by the time of the next election in 2015. The fate of both coalition partners - Conservatives and Liberal Democrats - also rests on what state the economy is in four years down the line.
The independent Office for Budget Responsibility is likely to downgrade its 2.1 percent 2011 growth forecast, which could affect borrowing slightly in coming years and will encourage critics of the government's planned spending cuts.
The cuts pencilled in to an emergency budget last June will start to bite in earnest from April, the start of the new fiscal year. Public sector job cuts are unavoidable and are estimated to total more than 300,000 over the next four years
Ministers said on Saturday that Wednesday's budget would exempt more workers from income tax and use bank levy money to help young people train for jobs. Osborne indicated there could also be help for motorists struggling with rising petrol prices.
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