The big lie of slashing in order to shrink the deficit is exposing itself at the same time youth unemployment is skyrocketing to a 17 year high. The tough talk and big promises of the benefits of austerity are falling flat. In case the Republicans in the US are watching, brutal cuts only kill the economy and reduce growth. The Guardian:
It is now expected that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) will declare at the time of Osborne's autumn statement on 29 November that the downturn's impact is more permanent than thought and the government may not be able to meet its commitment to eliminate the structural deficit – the part of the deficit unaffected by growth – by 2014-15, as he predicted in the June 2010 budget.
The expected delay is symptomatic of the damage on the public finances being wrought by lower-than-expected growth and deepening unemployment.
The admission over deficit reduction does not mean the chancellor will break his mandate, as that gave him the leeway to eliminate the current structural deficit either by 2014-15, or a year later.
