Mad Labour is trying to borrow its way out of debt and pulling us deeper into trouble – they need to get a grip urgently

4 comments 4 Next THE Labour Government is doing the equivalent of taking out credit cards to pay the interest on Britain’s existing loans. It’s madness. Any family or business in this position would know they were sinking, that every attempt to borrow their way out of trouble was pulling them deeper . But Andy Burnham and John Healey just don’t get it. 6 Mad Labour is trying to borrow its way out of debt and it is pulling the nation deeper into trouble 6 ‘We’ve heard nothing from the PM and his Chancellor about cutting spending and getting the deficit down’, says the Tory leader Credit: Getty Advertisement We have to start living within our means. It is the only way Britain will be able to fund our Armed Forces , bring down taxes and get our economy growing so that everyone can feel richer again. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Email address Please provide a valid email. Your info will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy You'll now receive top stories, breaking news, and more, straight to your email. Labour aren’t interested. Since they entered government, they have increased borrowing by £170billion. Britain’s national debt is now higher than at any point since the 1960s. READ MORE FROM ON KEMI KEMI BLAST Get a grip on immigration or UK will end up with riots like France, Kemi warns BUDGET BLAST Healey will do more damage at his first Budget than Rachel Reeves, fears Kemi We’ve heard nothing from the PM and his Chancellor about cutting spending and getting the deficit down. Instead, they’re planning a “nothing to see here” Budget next week that tries to do as little as possible in the hope that no one notices. Britain cannot afford to do as little as possible. We need to get an urgent grip on the public finances. The Conservatives are the only party that understand we must cut spending and start cutting the deficit. Advertisement Most read in The Sun BEACH HORROR Brit tourist 'seriously injured' after 32ft plunge from cliff at popular beach night shift Reason why it is so dark this morning explained SMASH TRAGEDY Beloved high school student, 15, killed in crash as three fight for life 'RAPE' HORROR Woman 'raped' in car park near airport in early hours - as man arrested 6 The Conservatives are now under new management, pictured new Shadow Chancellor Andrew Griffith Credit: AP 6 Kemi wants to cut Business Rates for shops on the high street to revitalise our town centres and bring back good local jobs Credit: Getty That’s why we have found more than £70billion in savings the government could start making today. Under our Golden Economic Rule, half of those savings would go to reducing the deficit. Because the Conservatives believe in handing a stronger economy to the next generation. With the other half, we would create a stronger economy and a stronger country. Advertisement Defence is the first duty of any government. It is unconscionable that after almost two-and-a-half years of Labour, the Armed Forces still don’t know how much money they are getting from the Government. Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves sat on their hands for two years, and now Andy Burnham has kicked the decision into next autumn. John Healey actually resigned as Defence Secretary because he said that failing to meet a defence spending target of three per cent of GDP would put our country and our troops at risk. He was right. But sadly, we have a Prime Minister who believes that “national security can’t come at the expense of social security”. Advertisement So, we are paying hundreds of thousands of young people with anxiety and ADHD to sit at home on benefits , instead of giving our Armed Forces the backing they desperately need. The second part of creating a stronger country and a stronger economy is making sure you keep more of what you earn. Next week’s Budget will be Labour’s third since the general election. At the first, they put up taxes by £40billion. At the second, they put up taxes again by £26billion. 6 ‘It is unconscionable that after almost two-and-a-half years of Labour, the Armed Forces still don’t know how much money they are getting from the Government’, highlights Kemi Credit: Alamy Advertisement 6 PM Andy Burnham just doesn’t get that he is pulling the nation deeper into trouble Credit: AP Since the election, unemployment has skyrocketed, with 350,000 more people unemployed, while graduates are finding it harder than ever to get a job and vacancies are at their lowest level in 12 years. Politicians today are spending money they don’t have and leaving young people to pay the bill. No wonder they are angry. They can’t get jobs and we are saddling them with more and more debt. Raising taxes just kills growth. Businesses close, people lose their jobs and the country gets poorer. Advertisement But Labour keep dreaming up new taxes because, as their own Welfare Secretary once said, at every meeting he has with Labour MPs, they ask: “Who can we tax in order to pay benefits to others?” A country cannot tax its way to prosperity. It has never worked before, and Labour’s two-and-a-half years in government are proof it doesn’t work now. These problems didn’t start under Labour, but they have got much, much worse since they came in. By contrast, the Conservatives are now under new management and, with my Shadow Chancellor Andrew Griffith and new Economic Team, we are showing we have learnt from our mistakes and we are setting things right. So here’s my opening offer: cut National Insurance for under-25s to get young people back into work. Advertisement Cut Business Rates for shops on the high street to revitalise our town centres and bring back good local jobs. Scrap Labour’s Family Farms Tax and Family Business Taxes so that farmers and families who have built up businesses over generations aren’t penalised when they hand them to their children. And scrap Stamp Duty and Inheritance Tax, because only the Conservatives understand the importance of home ownership and will make sure that, whether it’s getting on the housing ladder or keeping a home in the family, people aren’t taxed for doing the right thing. RECOMMENDED STORIES Cut spending. Cut the deficit. Fund our defence. Cut taxes. That is how we live within our means. Advertisement 4 comments 4