Osborne's pay freeze warning at the Tory Party conference

George Osborne has set out a raft of tough cutbacks to reduce Britain's national debt and to "sort out Labour's mess". The shadow chancellor has told delegates in Manchester a Conservative Government would impose a one-year pay freeze on the majority of public sector workers. Under Mr Osborne's plans, only the one million earning less than £18,000 would get a rise. Military personnel on active service overseas would also be compensated. Mr Osborne said the freeze would reduce Government spending by £3.2 billion a year. He also confirmed plans to bring forward to 2016 the date when the retirement age for men will be raised from 65 to 66, saving £13 billion a year. And he said he would stop paying tax credits to households with incomes over £50,000 by introducing a means test on Child Tax Credit. Child Trust Funds for newborn babies would also be scrapped for all but the poorest families. Mr Osborne vowed "politics must change forever" following the MPs' expenses scandal. He promised to bring in "complete change" as the Tories head towards the General Election next year and to focus his efforts on helping the "lost generation" hit by the recession. He has again accused Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling of treating the British people "like fools" and says the Tories will have the "guts" to carry out cutbacks as the UK's economy recovers.

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ITN | October 6, 2009

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