ft Simulator is the challenge in clear terms

"Be your own Chancellor of the Exchequer." Three days before the third televised debate, on the theme of the economy, between the leaders of the British parties in the race for the elections of tomorrow, "Financial times" was on its Internet site a fascinating budget Simulator, containing more than 30 entries credible each reducing of at least 1 billion books expenditures of the State. No need to browse long to understand why the British political parties have not dwelled on the subject of the reduction of the train of life of the State during the campaign.

Yet, this is the most critical theme. To prevent the decline of the pound sterling, currently benefit, turns into a rout and interest rates soar with the country's debt, currently relatively low, experts believe that the next Government will have to cut over five years to at least half the budget deficit, which exceeded 11 of the GDP this year and settled at 163 billion pounds. Never such efforts would have been requested to UK citizens since the end of the 1970s, even since the war, if the Conservatives are elected according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), a think tank authoritative.

"ft" Simulator is the challenge in clear terms. The current plan of the Labour Government plans cuts in spending of 37 billion pounds by 2014, that all parties are watching as a minimum. This represents a quarter of the health system, half of public pensions, twice the budget of the police or the three quarters of the defence. Of course, this kind of sabrage is impossible. In more realistic terms, it could mean a decrease of 5 of the remuneration of the public sector, a freeze on the welfare of one year, the cancellation of the royalty of free television for some and aid for the purchase of fuel oil, a division of a quarter of the population, the two aircraft carriers planned cessation, a division by two of the cost of maintaining roads, the case of investments in buildings for schools, etc., because it is not everything.

Minimized tax increases

Also for the purpose of making meaningful the parties - in vain-, IFS has published a study. He explains first that all parties have planned at least two-thirds (80 for the tories) efforts to rebalance public finances come from spending cuts, the rest from tax increases. A potentially "sur-ambitieux" objective according to IFS, which means that the tax could increase more than expected.

Done IFS especially the point on the vast space of reduced spending not elaborate by the parties. In real terms, the tories should find, between April 2011-March 2015, 64 billion of savings in public services that they have not excluded budgetary effort and announced that 17.7 of this amount. Labour and the Lib Dems, these amounts are respectively 51 billion and 13.1, and 47 billion and 25.9. It includes the indecisiveness of many voters. The truth will be known only when the next Government will present its budget.

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