Commenting on the latest borrowing figures (showing that borrowing in April – May 2011 is £1.5 billion higher than for the same period in 2010), Mark Littlewood, the Director General of the Institute of Economic Affairs, said:

“The government’s plans for reducing the deficit are now showing worrying signs of slippage. For all the furore surrounding the proposed cuts, they amount to just a 3p reduction in every £1 the government spends over the next four years.

“With each policy U-turn, the gap between planned and actual savings widens. Government borrowing is now higher than when the Coalition came to office, by an eye-watering £25m a day.

“The abandonment of the proposed changes in sentencing may be a sensible move. But if money is no longer going to be saved in this area, greater savings need to be found elsewhere.

“A reversal of planned savings needs to be matched by a redoubling of efforts to cut costs elsewhere. Without this commitment, the government’s credibility on deficit reduction will seep away day by day.”

Notes to editors

To arrange an interview with Mark Littlewood, IEA Director General, please contact Stephanie Lis, Communications Director, 077 5171 7781, slis@iea.org.uk.

According to the latest ONS statistics on Public sector finance “public sector net borrowing was £27.4 billion; this is £1.5 billion higher net borrowing than in the same period of 2010/11, when net borrowing was £25.9 billion.”

The mission of the Institute of Economic Affairs is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems.

The IEA is a registered educational charity and independent of all political parties.