Budget 2011: Balls ridicules government growth strategy
- Published
Ed Balls said the chancellor was planning to reduce maternity and paternity rights to improve growth
Labour's Ed Balls has claimed there is "nothing" of importance in the government's growth strategy, after apparently getting a leaked copy.
The document is due to be published when Chancellor George Osborne delivers his Budget on Wednesday.
Mr Balls, the shadow chancellor, said the strategy's main policy was "getting rid of maternity and paternity rights".
But Mr Osborne told MPs said this was not the case and accused Labour of making too many spending commitments.
In his second Budget, the chancellor will announce the Office for Budget Responsibility's (OBR) latest forecasts for growth in the economy this year and the state of the public finances.
Economists expect the OBR to downgrade forecasts for growth in 2011 - after figures showed a 0.6% contraction in the last three months of 2010.
'No need to worry'
However, they also believe borrowing figures will not be as high as previously anticipated - up to 拢10bn lower than the 拢158bn predicted in June's emergency Budget.
During Treasury questions in the House of Commons, Mr Balls brandished a document he said was a leaked copy of the growth strategy.
He said: "I have a copy actually of the chancellor's document to be published tomorrow with me today, and it says growth comes first for this government. It says it will underpin private confidence, investment, job creation.
"The chancellor has no need to worry. I won't be handing it to the press. I read it last night and frankly there's nothing in it worth leaking."
He added: "Does he really feel that getting rid of maternity and paternity rights is going to be enough to boost our economy?"
Amid shouting from MPs, Mr Osborne replied: "We are not getting rid of maternity and paternity rights, so I'm not sure where he got that from."
He held up a glossy Labour pamphlet, which he claimed listed all the spending commitments made recently by shadow ministers, saying: "If he can't control his own front bench, how on earth is he going to control the nation's finances?"
Mr Osborne also said manufacturing was expanding as a share of the UK economy, whereas it had shrunk under Labour.
Meanwhile, the latest UK Consumer Prices Index annual rate of inflation has risen to 4.4%, up from 4% in January.
This was driven by higher food, fuel and clothing costs and was the highest level for more than two years.