CBI calls for freeze in public sector pay

Another £70 billion should be shaved off public spending to rebalance the budget, The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has told the Treasury. The Treasury is planning to borrow £703 billion from 2009/10 to 2013/14, an unprecedented run of deficits that will push the national debt to £1.4 trillion. However, even that stark estimate may be too low because the economy will not rebound as fast as ministers hope, business leaders said. ‘With a lacklustre recovery in prospect and a structural loss in output, the CBI estimates that borrowing could even exceed this projection by £50 billion,’ the group said in a submission to the Treasury. In addition, another £70 billion will be needed over the following two years to balance the budget by 2015-16, the CBI said. The CBI has drawn up a detailed plan to significantly shrink the public sector, cutting costs and handing over many tasks to private companies. The group also wants public sector staff pay and benefits to be curbed.