The 'no cuts' solemn promise Liz Truss made 3 months ago - which she's now ready to break

Liz Truss is about to break her promise not to cut public services - one of the promises that propelled her to the top job.

Last July, the Prime Minister, who was on the campaign trail trying to woo party members, told the Mirror unequivocally that his plans to cut taxes would not involve cutting services.

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But less than three months later, his chancellor is telling the country exactly the opposite, refusing to rule out a fresh austerity drive as inflation leaves an £18billion hole in public finances.< /p>

Ms Truss said at an event in Peterborough - her first campaign appearance after the leadership race was cut to two: "I'm very clear that I don't foresee any cuts in public spending.

"What I'm planning are reforms to the civil service, to send more money to the front lines, to cut a lot of the bureaucracy that people face, and to support big organizations like this. to make sure people don't waste their time fighting the system because the system works for them, not against them."

Today Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng refused to rule out a new wave of Conservative austerity (

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She continued, "It's about doing better. I'm certainly not talking about cutting government spending, what I'm talking about is increasing growth.

"If we bring UK growth levels to the level of our best competitors, we will have more money to put in the pockets of families, which is very important to me.

"I want people to be able to manage their own money, but we will also have more money to spend on our public services in the long term."

Today Kwasi Kwarteng refused to rule out a new era of austerity as Universal Credit claimants brace for a real cut in benefits.

Fresh from a humiliating U-turn on the mini budget, the Chancellor has been accused of leaving vital services with a 'huge black hole in their budgets'.

He said he would stick to the spending review totals calculated in 2021, but inflation has soared since then, meaning they are worth £18bn less in 2021. real terms.

The IFS think tank today warned: "The Chancellor has indicated that ministries' cash spending plans through 2024-25 will remain unchanged, equating to a reduction in real terms of their generosity in the face of to higher inflation.

"It will squeeze public services, but it won't be enough to close the tax hole the Chancellor has created for himself."

Based on BBC Radio 4's Today program...