THE Labour Party is in complete denial about the state it has left the British economy in, but it should be ashamed. Our £155bn budget deficit is one of the worst in the developed world; the national debt is heading towards £1trillion; for every £4 the Government spends, £1 is borrowed; and there is the sheer waste of spending £35bn on debt interest payments.

Labour has been attacking the cuts that the new coalition Government is making. It went into the General Election promising 20 per cent cuts, but is now trying to make out it wouldn’t have cut anything.

Let’s be clear: no one wants schools or hospitals cuts, but we are in this position solely because of Labour’s reckless borrowing and spending policies during its 13 years in power.

The simple truth is Labour wrecked our economy and now the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have come together to clear up its mess.

There will have to be tough and difficult decisions, but it’s not the coalition Government’s fault we are in this position.

If Labour wants to have any credibility over the economy ever again it should start by apologising for the dire mess it left Britain in.

Councillor Phillip Broughton, Conservative, Stockton Borough Council.