Denis Tuohy, Thames TV
The one substantial issue which we have found bothers Conservative supporters as well as everybody else, is unemployment. And there are many Conservative supporters at the moment who are really seriously asking the question as to whether the policy is right, or whether more government spending in the public sector is not now warranted?
MT
Yes. You start to take through what they call “spending in the public sector” . First, government has no money. We don't take anything called “government money” in, we only take in money from ordinary men and women, in to be spent by government. So every penny we spend has to be taken in, either in the rates or in the taxes. So if we take in more to spend it, it means that they don't have it to spend, so that the amount of demand is the same in the economy. But…let's just try to see for a moment where jobs come from. Jobs come from business. Business comes from pleasing the customer. This is why we've put so much emphasis on more small business. All that government can do, and it does, is carry out the public services, and we do that, and spend on capital infrastructure, and we do that. Last year for fixed capital spending was an all time record. But in the end we rely on the wealth creating sector, the private sector, to create the jobs, to create the business from which we pay the tax to keep the public services going. So when you work it through, where do jobs come from? Material edited out by Thames TV at this point.
Denis Tuohy, Thames TV
It has been said, for instance, that the proceeds of privatisation could nevertheless be used to finance public work projects, particularly housing, as a means of creating employment.
MT
Yes, but the proceeds of privatisation are part of the whole income of the government in any year, so they are already spent. So last year, when I think we spent £22 billion of public sector spending, 22 billion, part of that was met by the proceeds of privatisation. All of it goes into the same pot and it goes either to support defence, law and order, the National Health Service, or education. There isn't any other money, from any other source, than from people or from sales of assets.
Denis Tuohy, Thames TV
It's being said by quite a few Conservatives that the message of the opinion polls at the moment is not just mid-term blues but is a judgment on six years of government. If clear presentation of policy over the next year hasn't improved that position in the opinion polls, won't it be too late to consider changes to strategy?
MT
No, uh, because I don't think there's any question of a change of strategy. As you indicated earlier, most people think the policies are right, and I will challenge any other political party to have a better policy on unemployment, than the one which I have indicated, the one which we are carrying out.