Budget 2011: Govt to benefit from £8bn windfall

According to an Ernst & Young Item Club forecast, the government could benefit from an £8bn windfall this year as higher tax revenues and lower spending combine to reduce the pressure on Chancellor George Osborne ahead of this week's Budget. However, the report recommends the coalition government sticks to its austerity programme of strict cuts. On Sunday, Osborne told the BBC it would be "a huge mistake" for the government to water down its spending measures. But Ernst & Young also said the proposed cuts, designed to reduce the government's budget deficit, had already helped to "r...