"oblivious to economic conditions"

Lord Mandelson is seeking to regain the initiative in the public spending row by claiming services can improve without more major investment.

"Our 1997 manifesto described the New Labour approach as being 'wise spenders, not big spenders'. This is and remains a core New Labour principle. We do not believe that we should try to solve problems simply by throwing money at them."



New Labour 1997 manifesto

We have experienced the slowest average growth rate of any similar period since the second world war. There has been a fundamental failure to tackle the underlying causes of inflation, of low growth and of unemployment. These are:

too much economic instability, with wild swings from boom to bust

too little investment in education and skills, and in the application of new technologies

too few opportunities to find jobs, start new businesses or become self-employed

too narrow an industrial base and too little sense of common purpose in the workplace or across the nation.

Labour's housing strategy will address the needs of homeowners and tenants alike.

We will reject the boom and bust policies which caused the collapse of the housing market.

We will work with mortgage providers to encourage greater provision of more flexible mortgages to protect families in a world of increased job insecurity.

AND

"By 2010, we want Britain to break away from the decades of boom and bust, as we stick to clear rules for spending and borrowing. We will take no risks with economic policy, make no compromise on fiscal responsibility"
- Labour Manifesto, 2001

"Forward to increased prosperity, not back to boom and bust"
- Labour Manifesto, 2005