Gordon Brown set out efficiency savings of £12bn over the next four years to help reduce public debt, ahead of the pre-Budget report.

The PM was unveiling the efficiency savings as he tried to show how Labour could halve the UK’s budget deficit.

Among the measures, the senior service pay bill will be cut by 20% over three years.

In a speech in London, Mr Brown said ministers had identified £3bn in additional savings since the Budget in April. Of that, he said £1.3bn would be achieved by streamlining central government, indicating that some programmes might be cut or abandoned.

The Conservatives have accused the government of not being straight with voters on the scale of cuts needed.

I think the government should use its imagination a bit and try to generate revenue from elsewhere rather than just tax the population more or cut the services we expect and we pay for.

* I reckon Mr Brown could make about £1.5bn per annum by putting alcohol tax up by 10%. This would only have the effect of raising a bottle of spirits by about 60p * Making foreign vehicles pay to use our roads. The French and Swiss charge us for driving in their countries.

* Cut 80% of all quangos within six months. Sell the buildings and inventory in use.

* Stop most foreign aid.

* Demand our money back from the banks within a timescale or we may suspect that the money we loaned them was in fact a gift.

* Get commercial on all Government contracts, especially MOD.

* Cut bureaucracy.

* Given that the massive NHS database didn’t work and is to be given the chop, the next obvious target is the hugely expensive ID card scheme and the associated database.

£20 billion at a stroke.

More importantly, what is Cameron going to cut if he wins the next election?

My guess is that he will cut public sector jobs, and unemployment will increase enormously.

And all so the fat cats can get a tax reduction.

New Tories, New Danger.

Coun Salim Mulla