Ed Balls admits Labour could not reverse cuts Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls has told a conference Labour has a "big task" ahead if it if is to regain the trust of voters. In a major speech to the Fabian Society in London, Mr Balls set out what he sees as the "economic alternative" to the coalition - which included an acknowledgement that cuts were necessary, and that Labour should have been clearer on its policies in that regard in the 2010 general election. He also admitted that the party would not be able to guarantee a reverse in the coalition cuts if Labour were re-elected. Referencing pledges to cut £1bn from education and £5bn from defence, Mr Balls said of Labour's economic plans: "To make that alternative work and be credible, it must be underpinned by a clear commitment to balanced but tough spending and budget discipline now and into the medium term... However difficult it is for me, for some of my colleagues and for our wider supporters, we cannot make any commitments now that the next Labour government will reverse tax rises or spending cuts. And we will not. However, he cautioned that George Osborne's "too much, too fast" approach to cuts would lead to a "decade of stagnation." Instead, he promoted a policy of boosting growth through temporary tax cuts and investment in jobs in the short term, whilst delivering reform over the longer term to build "responsible capitalism."