Janan Ganesh's FT column is always a must read for those who want an insight into the thoughts of George Osborne's Treasury team, and today's column is no different. It rightly explains that the electorate is largely resigned to the prospect of slow growth over the next few years, and is doubtful how different things would be under a different government.
But there's one section of the column which is extremely worrying and revealing for those of us who care about our medium-term economic health. Janan writes:
"The Treasury regards Labour's call for a fiscal loosening as dangerously wrong but at least coherent. It is some of the Tory right's proposals for growth - such as tax cuts financed by deeper spending cuts, so that there is no actual overall stimulus - that really mystify."
Yes, that's right. It seems it is necessary these days to have to spell out to the Conservative party the sort of economic doctrine the Conservatives took as given in the 1980s.
It really is quite simple. Some of us:
To re-iterate: we don't want short-term 'stimulus' - we want the Chancellor to be taking the medium-term measures to restore supply-side health to the economy and divert resources back into the private sector, where competitive pressures and innovation lead to the productivity improvements which drive long-term prosperity.
Does the Chancellor's team not believe this? If so, what do they believe?