Welfare cuts will hit the north as much as five times as hard as the Conservative heartland southern counties

Cameron ponders the implications with IDS, Osborne and his party...

SOURCE FINANCIAL TIMES: Cuts to welfare payments will hit the local economies of northern towns and cities as much as five times as hard as the Conservative heartland southern counties. The FT's research underlines the potential risks to economic regeneration and private sector business prospects in poorer areas where the local population faces the loss of a large slice of purchasing power. Small independent shops already faced tough competition from supermarkets and out of town centres and had gone through a hard time during the recession. Taking more money out of already struggling local economies may well exacerbate the problem.

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