I can’t pretend to be surprised to read the letter from various left-wing organisations (Oxford Mail, October 21) calling for opposition to “all cuts in jobs and public services”.

However, not even Gordon Brown or ‘Red’ Ed Miliband could support this call, given that Mr Brown included 20 per cent cuts in revenue public spending and 50 per cent cuts in capital public spending before the General Election, although neither of them saw fit to advise the voting public of this county.

Just to be clear, there is an ongoing structural imbalance in the country’s finances such that one pound of government spending out of every four is currently financed by borrowing and is adding to the mountain of debt the new government has inherited from the old one.

It is not the first time that a new government has had to pick up and sort out the mess left by an outgoing Labour government; I hope it will be the last.

Our primary aim in Oxfordshire has to be to re-balance our local economy by growing the private sector as the public sector necessarily declines to a level that is affordable.

There is much to do here but Oxfordshire has an exciting private sector economy, capable of significant growth in science-, knowledge, academic, health, IT, publishing and engineering-based sectors.

We need to address that challenge while we restore the country to financial solvency and responsibility.

Keith R Mitchell, Leader of Oxfordshire County Council, County Hall, Oxford