The government’s austerity programme will see Britain face the toughest spending squeeze of any major economy over the next five years, according to a leading tax think-tank.
In an analysis of the economic problems facing the next government, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that under the coalition’s current spending plans, the UK’s fiscal consolidation over the next parliament will be the largest out of 32 advanced economies.
It said that if the plans set out in the autumn statement were to be implemented there would cuts of 14.1 per cent, or more than £50 billion, to annual spending over the next five years.
Cuts in the current parliament are expected to reach £38.3 billion, or 9.5 per cent.
Under plans by George Osborne,