The public sector needs to display the same flexibility that the private sector has amid impending job cuts, according to Owen James, economist at the centre for economics and business research (CEBR).

James said: “The new Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition is now in place and there are reports of a potential emergency budget in 50 days. The Treasury is apparently preparing £6bn of efficiency savings and unless the public sector can demonstrate the flexibility that the private sector did during the recession, large-scale job cuts would seem inevitable, with private firms dependent on government contracts also likely to face tougher times.”