§ Mr. Moreasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the figures of public expenditure for 1966 contained in the report of the National Economic Development Office correspond with Government policy; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterThese estimates are not those of the Government but have been prepared by the National Economic Development Office. They represent the Office's assessment on the basis described in the Report of what the total of public expenditure might be (and, to some extent, how it might be made up) in 1966 if national output were to grow by 4 per cent. per annum. In only a few cases is the need for these items of public expenditure directly related to the rate of economic growth over a relatively short period.
In recent years public expenditure has been growing faster than national output and this is likely to continue in 1963–64. If national output per head grows at a faster rate than in the past, this would clearly make it easier to sustain a rising level of public expenditure. In total the rate of increase of public expenditure included by the Office does not appear inconsistent with the rate implicit in present Government policy, which of course assumes sustained economic growth; but the distribution between the various services is a matter of Government policy, and the Government at this stage have no comments on the detailed figures for particular services in the Report.