Cameron: Austerity should last for ever and Britain must get used to being a 'leaner, more efficient state'

The Prime Minister urged against welfare cuts in speech at Lord Mayor's Banquet in London's Guildhall



It is a shift from his claim during the 2010 election that he and Nick Clegg 'didn't come into politics to make cuts'

He warned against an Ed Miliband-led government which would push the budget deficit and debts 'out of control'




The age of austerity is not just a passing phase and Britain should get used to having a ‘permanently’ smaller state, David Cameron said last night.

The Prime Minister used one of his most significant speeches of the year to say that low public spending and a ‘leaner, more efficient state’ would have to be maintained permanently in order for the UK to succeed.

He said the country would have to rediscover its traditional ‘buccaneering’ spirit for private enterprise in order to generate wealth instead of relying on the state.

Pro austerity: Prime Minister David Cameron made his comments at the annual Lord Mayor's Banquet at Guildhall in London alongside other ministers and lords

Keynote speech: The dinner is a chance for the Prime Minister to make a major announcement. He said the country has to rediscover its 'buccaneering spirit'

Address: Mr Cameron was sat with the past and present Lord Mayors and spoke to a room of dignitaries, including the Archbishop of Canterbury

Applause: The room welcomes the head table before sitting down to dinner. Later Cameron would extoll the virtues of tightening belts

Impassioned speech: Cameron warned against an Ed Miliband-led government that would set the budget deficit and debts 'out of control again'



Mention: Cameron said to Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby: 'I hope you will forgive me for saying it's not robbing but to pay Paul, rather robbing Peter to pay Peter' Incoming: Lord Mayor Fiona Woolf is the 686th to take office. She spoke at the banquet, days after the inauguration parade In an attempt to counter Labour’s pledge to freeze energy bills, Mr Cameron insisted the single biggest threat to the cost of living is the budget deficit and debts getting ‘out of control again’ under a government led by Ed Miliband. ‘There are some people who seem to think that the way you reduce the cost of living in this country is for the state to spend more and more taxpayers’ money,’ Mr Cameron said. ‘It’s as if somehow you measure the compassion of the government by the amount of other people’s money it can spend. At a time when family budgets are tight, it is really worth remembering that this spending comes out of the pockets of the same taxpayers whose living standards we want to see improve.’ Opulent: Around 900 guests attend the event hosted in the hall's grandest room, which has hosted royalty numerous times since 1411 'More with less': The speech was a shift from David Cameron's claim in 2010 that he 'didn't come into politics to make cuts' Inauguration: Lady Judge Lord Mayor Alderman Fiona Woolf with Prime Minister David Cameron exchanging words after his speech promoting welfare cuts Toast: Home Secretary Theresa May drinks a toast to Cameron's speech, dressed up in a tight, strapless dress and glittery eye make up, seated on the head table

In agreement: May smiled and nodded throughout Cameron's speech sitting along from him on the top table



The top table: (From left to right) Sheriff Alderman Sir Paul Judge; Lady Judge; Lord Mayor of London Fiona Woolf; Prime Minister David Cameron; Nicholas Woolf, the Lord Mayor's husband; Angela Waddingham; Sheriff Adrian Waddingham

In a reference to the leader of the Church of England, who has protested about some of the Government’s welfare cuts, Mr Cameron added: ‘I hope the Archbishop of Canterbury will forgive me for saying – it’s not robbing Peter to pay Paul, but rather robbing Peter to pay Peter.’

He said that if interest and mortgage rates started to soar because the deficit was allowed to rise again, an ‘increase in cost of living will far outweigh the impact of any increase in government spending or indeed reduction in taxation’.

‘This Government is not prepared to let that happen. Already we have cut the deficit by a third and we are sticking to the task. But that doesn’t just mean making difficult decisions on public spending.

Procession: Cameron walks through the Guildhall with Lord Mayor of London Fiona Woolf and Nicholas Woolf, the Lord Mayor's husband, before the banquet

Sea of red: Dignitaries wait in the Guildhall before the arrival of the Prime Minster ahead of The Lord Mayor's Banquet on November 11, 2013

‘It also means something more profound. It means building a leaner, more efficient state. We need to do more with less. Not just now, but permanently.’

Mr Cameron said there was growing evidence that public services could be maintained or improved as budgets are reduced. ‘There are 40 per cent fewer people working in the Department for Education - but over 3,000 more free schools and academies, with more children doing tougher subjects than ever before,’ he added.

‘There are 23,000 fewer administrative roles in the NHS – but 5,000 more doctors, with shorter waiting times.’

He claimed the reductions were proof that a leaner state could deliver better results.



