King criticises Tory leaders
UK BANK governor Mervyn King criticised David Cameron and George Osborne for their lack of experience ahead of the election, according to leaked US embassy cables.
King told US ambassador Louis Susman that the future Prime Minister and chancellor relied too heavily on a narrow circle of advisers and “had a tendency to think about issues only in terms of politics, and how they might affect Tory electorability.”
King told Susman he had held private meetings with the two conservative politicians before the election to urge them to draw up a detailed plan to reduce the deficit. Following the meeting, King had expressed “great concern about the conservative leaders’ lack of experience,” according to Susman.
The governor said that party leader David Cameron and shadow chancellor George Osborne had “not fully grasped the pressures they will face from different groups when attempting to cut spending”.
The revelation follows recent criticism from senior bank officials over King’s “excessively political” support for the coalition government’s fiscal austerity programme.