PRIME Minister Cameron and Chancellor Osborne have threatened more savage cuts in spending on pensions, the NHS and defence if the UK votes to leave the EU.
Cameron told the Andrew Marr Show yesterday ‘our economy would be smaller’ if the UK left the single market and the UK would have to renegotiate a large number of trade deals leading to ‘a decade of uncertainty’ and ‘difficult choices’.
Cameron said forecasts from the Institute for Fiscal Studies suggested Brexit could lead to a shortfall in the public finances of between £20bn and £40bn which would need to be ‘filled’ – either by tax rises or spending cuts.
While pensioner benefits were a ‘policy priority’, the PM said £90bn was spent on these every year and they were among many existing commitments that would have to be re-examined in a post-Brexit climate.
He said: ‘Our pensions promise is based on a growing and succeeding economy. ‘All the experts. . . agree that if we leave the single market, if we cut ourselves off from the most important market, our economy would be smaller and that has consequences.
‘We would be taking a risk with growth, with jobs and with pensions.’
In a series of newspaper articles Cameron said both pensions and ring-fencing future funding for the NHS could be at risk. He told the Sunday Telegraph: ‘We’ve made a special effort to protect pensioners. We did all this in the expectation of a growing economy. But if we had a big black hole, we could struggle to justify this special protection any longer.
‘In fact, even if we could justify it morally, it wouldn’t actually be affordable.’ Cameron also told the Observer that ‘our ability to ring-fence and protect spending on health could be at risk too’.
He claimed: ‘This is the cold reality of leaving the EU – that’s why doctors, nurses and the boss of the NHS all say we will be stronger, safer and better-off in the EU.’ Osborne said Brexit would mean ‘a new dose of austerity, more years of public spending cuts’.
He told the Sun on Sunday: ‘If you look at the numbers, the defence budget would have to be cut by between £1bn-£1.5bn.
‘It’s the last thing I want to do because I want the country to stay in the European Union, but if we leave the European Union Britain is smaller and so Britain’s armed forces will be smaller and that means fewer planes and ships and personnel to defend us. ‘So it is both a hit to our national economic security but also our national security.’