Brown's economic picture starting to fade - Cable

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 18th Apr 2007

Commenting on the news that the number of people out of work increased by 21,000 to 1.69 million between December and February, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor, Vince Cable MP said: "We are faced with the prospect of a very nasty combination of more people out of work, higher inflation and, almost certainly, a rise in interest rates.

"There is no safety net for those who are losing their jobs and also have substantial debts, particularly mortgages. Many of them will quickly fall into arrears, adding to the growing trend of repossessions.

"The happy picture of steady growth, low inflation and falling unemployment which the Chancellor has painted over the last decade is starting to fade in a worrying way."