Stop Meddling, Just Abolish The DTI - Bruce

4.47.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Mon 12th Jul 2004

Commenting on the Chancellor's Spending Review, Malcolm Bruce MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow DTI Secretary, said: "This year's Spending Review is a plea of 'guilty' by the Government, but an inadequate sentence has been imposed.

"The Chancellor's proposals for the DTI are not the radical overhaul the business world is crying out for.

"They are simply an acknowledgement of the huge amounts of money being wasted by the Department. The Chancellor is doing nothing more than cutting back the excessive bureaucracy and expenditure the Government introduced in the first place.

"We need to put an end to this Government's control freakery and its endless need to meddle at the micro-management level.

"Abolishing the DTI, as the Liberal Democrats propose, would free business from unnecessary regulations and leave them to concentrate on core activities without the fear of being undercut by competitors armed with Government subsidies.

"It's about time the Government found faith with British business and left them to get on with it."