Lib Dems plan to scrap Treasury for new ‘department for growth’

Daisy Cooper says over-centralised' Treasury would be merged with parts of Department for Business and moved to Birmingham

The Liberal Democrats would replace the Treasury and Department for Business with a new department for growth, with the aim of creating a more cohesive and long-term economic vision for the UK, the party has said in a major policy move.

Announcing the plan at a speech in London, Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dems' deputy leader and Treasury spokesperson, said a Treasury brain" mindset based around short-term fiscal imperatives was dragging the country down.