Byrne: ‘Desperation for headlines’

Liam Byrne, Labour’s shadow minister for the Cabinet Office, comments on the government’s announcement on quangos:

“Labour had a plan for steadily saving £0.5 billion by carefully closing 25% of quangos over the next few years.

“The Tories now need to tell us whether their desperation for headlines and faster cuts means the cost of closing quangos is actually bigger than the savings.

“And while they’re at it, they should tell us whether their manifesto commitment for 20 new quangos is now on ice.”