Britain must live within its means, finance minister Hammond warns PM contenders

Britain must live within its means and the two contenders vying to become prime minister should be honest about the consequences of their spending plans, finance minister Philip Hammond said on Monday.

"This government has built up a reputation for fiscal responsibility and the British people have worked incredibly hard over a decade now to rebuild our public finances and I think it is very important we don't throw that away," he said in an interview with the BBC. "We have to live within our means and people have to be honest about the consequences of either spending more money or of cutting taxes."

Asked if the two rivals to succeed prime minister Theresa May were being honest, he said: "I think they need to be very careful about setting out these ambitions."