An extra £48bn must be taken out of public spending within five years, if the Government is to meet its deficit targets, according to a think-tank report this week.

The study by the Social Market Foundation and the Royal Society of Arts' (RSA) 2020 Public Services Hub claims that implied cuts of £26bn envisaged in last March's budget to 2016/17 do not take into account the impact of the sluggish economy on public finances.