§ The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr. James Callaghan)The strategy of this Budget is to achieve a state of balance on our combined current and long-term capital account. We have already made considerable progress. I aim to get most of the way towards closing the gap this year and to complete the process in the course of 1966. In doing so I am taking into account the need to reduce and later to abolish the temporary import charge as our progress warrants it.
We are changing direction; and the rest of my Budget speech will explain how I propose to bring this about.
Since this is to be—I apologise to the Committee—a long speech, covering an unusually wide range of issues, I propose to break with tradition and to state here and now two key points which would normally become clearer only in the course of the speech. First, I intend to reduce the net outflow of long-term capital from this country by at least £100 million a year. Secondly, I intend to decrease the pressure on our resources, through lower public expenditure and higher taxation, by £250 million.