The Government has taken “tough decisions” to tackle the recession and reduce its impact, the Prime Minister has said.
Speaking at his final Downing Street press conference before the summer recess, Gordon Brown said it was a challenging time for the country, but ministers had put in place “considerable” measures to help British businesses and families through the downturn.
He said initiatives such as the car scrappage scheme, the VAT cut and plans to help 300,000 young people get a job, training or more education were helping to Build Britain’s Future.
The PM said:
“This is a challenging period, we are taking difficult decisions, we are making tough choices, but these are the right decisions to make us stronger and to build a better Britain equipped best for its future.”
Mr Brown also said that the Government was preparing for the possibility of increased swine flu cases in a “calm, organised and ordered way” and said the National Pandemic Flu Service will be in place by the end of the week.
He said:
“I want the public to be reassured that we have been preparing for the possibility of a pandemic for a number of years.”
He added that most cases in the UK so far had been mild, and praised the work of NHS staff in treating those affected. Read about swine flu on Directgov
Asked about resources for troops in Afghanistan, Mr Brown said there were sufficient numbers of helicopters in the country to carry out the current offensive, known as Operation Panther’s Claw, as this required troops to be on the ground.
He said more helicopters are being ordered for Afghanistan, but he added:
“In the operations we are having at the moment it is completely wrong to say that the loss of lives has been caused by the absence of helicopters. For the operation we are doing at the moment we have the helicopters we need.”
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