IT seems that more than three weeks of gritting the roads has resulted in parts of the Labour Party starting to smell the salt...

ten years too late, I might add.

The Times of January 9 reports Chancellor Alistair Darling’s suggestion that a future Labour government will have to make the biggest cuts in expenditure for 20 years. It might be more accurate to suggest “cuts for the next 20 years”.

I was therefore disappointed to read the comments of Labour councillor Rob Yorke (HAS, Jan 9) claming that “you only get what you pay for” and that voters “will soon have the opportunity to vote on whether you want a high and efficient level of public service provision or one that is low and poor” – which suggests there’s some link between spending more money and efficiency.

Greater efficiency is not measured by spending more money, but by achieving the same output with less money or, even better, improved output with less money.

It has taken a bit longer this time, but history shows Labour will always ruin Britain’s economy – such a shame when it inherited a country in good shape in 1997.

Jim Tague, Bishop Auckland Conservatives.