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Many individuals including myself were disappointed with the Pre Budget speech yesterday. I had hoped that the chancellor would have grasped the nettle and tackle burning issues such as the actual poor state of the national finances, Public sector Pay, Helping small businesses, promoting saving and investing and getting the banking concerns to be realistic about lending to businesses. Like most people I agree that we need to have a combination of tax gains combined with expenditure cuts. The old line from the authorities is that rapid spending cuts would harm business and hamper the recovery. My view is that although wholesale immediate cuts could cause a problem, the timescales suggested are just too slow. It seems that the Chancellor is just tinkering around the edges of reform and does not want to tilt the boat too much prior to an election. The effect of spiralling public borrowing can be seen when you look at the Irish Economy. The once Celtic tiger has had its claws removed. Actual cuts in earnings are a reality along with drastic measures to reduce public borrowing. I nearly gagged on my dinner last night, whilst watching the six o clock news. Public sector were whinning about a cap on salary increases of 1%. I would much rather be it that situation, as opposed to working for the Public sectors in Eire. Many small business organisations have actually taken pay cuts in the last year, due to the recession. As ifa’s we offer a small business advice service to our customers on a daily basis. I would have loved to see a more radical approach to supporting small businesses as they are an essential part of the economy.