Whitehall spending as a proportion of GDP is expected to fall to its lowest level for 80 years by 2020. Spending on health, education and international development will, however, be ‘ring-fenced’.

Unprotected Whitehall departments will be expected to find £13 billion worth of departmental savings.

In a speech that underlined his credentials as a potential future leader of the Conservative Party, Mr Osborne said he wanted Britain to secure “higher living standards for the next generation to come”.

I find it very difficult to reconcile the fact that Osborne seeks higher living standards yet at the same time is proposing swingeing cuts to services.

Badly maintained roads, dirty street signs, overgrown verges, blocked drains, cut backs in social services etc. etc. do nothing to improve living standards at all – in fact quite the reverse.

If you only spend money on patching things up there comes a time some years later when you have to spend a lot more money on doing the job properly.