Don't mention the cuts...

There is a massive game of cat and mouse going on this afternoon about exactly where cuts will fall.

The Government obviously wants information to come out in a manageable stream between now, the budget and the comprehensive spending review later this year

So as hacks squeeze their contacts about where the axe will fall within particular departments, the Government communications machine is trying to put the brakes on the data flow.

I'm informed that some regional development agencies (RDAs) have been told by officials at the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) today not to speak with journalists about the detail of £270m of cuts RDAs are facing.

I understand, however, that the cuts to RDAs’ budgets will not come down from one department, BIS for example, they will be across several.

Each cut from a different department may be relatively small but added up they will be substantial for some agencies.