UK's Hammond rejects calls for end of austerity

UK Chancellor Philip Hammond has rejected calls by Labour and some Conservatives to announce the end of austerity in his spring statement on Tuesday, according to BBC report. 

Key quotes

The national debt was still too high.

There is light at the end of the tunnel... but we are still in the tunnel at the moment.

It will be wrong to "pour" every penny in public spending. 

We should be very careful looking at single sets of figures - one quarter or two quarters - we need to look at what's happening sustainably in the economy.

We have a debt of £1.8 trillion - 86.5% of our GDP,"  Mr Hammond said. "All the international organisations recognise that is higher than the safe level.