Daily View: How to leave the recession
The Confederation of British Industry conference yesterday saw the leaders of the three main political parties outlining their plans for economic growth. The commentators debated who fared best:
The Times leader column says Gordon Brown still deserves congratulations on his efforts to bail out the banks, and says David Cameron's proposals do not add up:
"Mr Cameron's relations with business leaders are still best described as wary. Mr Cameron reiterated his belief yesterday that future growth could be jeopardised by a failure to cut the deficit. The trouble is that his precise measures - freezing public sector pay for a year, cutting Whitehall by a third, reducing benefits for better-off families and raising state pension age earlier - do not add up to an answer to his own question."
While the Times supports Gordon Brown's business policies, the Telegraph congratulated David Cameron for his idea that cutting public spending cuts would complement economic growth:
"He clearly grasps the fundamentals of economic recovery - that should help."
However, Faisal Islam at Channel 4 News Snowblog points out that the IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn appeared to come down firmly on the side of Gordon Brown.
Not supporting any party is Polly Toynbee at the Guardian. She does not welcome the spending cuts proposed by all parties:
"Believe not a word the parties say about protecting frontline services: the cuts they plan are deeper than anything before and can't be confined to 'bureaucrats' and 'quangos'. They will hurt everyone, they risk the recovery, and will cause another wave of unemployment."
The Independent took the focus off the political leaders to the leaders of the CBI, who it gave a slap on the wrist for being divided:
"If business is to get its view across to government, it is going to need to do a lot better job of convincing the public as well as politicians of its needs. Just sitting there listening to party leaders trading generalities is not going to help either it or the economy."
Links in full
The Times | The politics of business
Polly Toynbee | Guardian | Take a long, hard look at tax
Telegraph | A bigger state is not the route to recovery• Independent | A strange business
• Faisal Islam | Channel 4 Snowblog | Has the IMF pulled the rug out from under Cameron
• Nick Robinson | BBC | Spot the difference
• Business Diary | Independent | Clegg ventures into enemy territory
• Ben Chu | Independent | Cameron's crowding out of reason
• Peter Hoskin | Spectator | Brown goes for growth - fails
• Ann Treneman | Times | Glowering Gordon gives way to dancing Dave
