Labour cuts to public services, NOT just public spending

First it was only talk of public spending cuts, but now a senior Labour chief has now gone a major step further by admitting that cuts in public services are a possibility - despite Gordon Brown promising to protect front-line services.

Newcastle councillor Sir Jeremy Beecham, a member of Labour's ruling national executive committee, said: "There needs to be a distinction between public services and public spending. The two things are not the same.

"For example if we said we are not going to do the ID cards and Trident, that would be a cut in public spending not public services.

"That is the sort of distinction we should be making. The Tories are using it as a cover to cut public services."

But he ADDED: "There is a possibility of cuts in some public services. I don't think there will be big cuts. There will be bigger cuts in public spending.

"The emphasis of a Labour Government would not be cuts in public services it would be cuts in public spending. But it would be wrong to completely rule out any cuts in public services.

"But the emphasis with a Tory Government would be very much cutting public service because that is where they are coming from."