Hundreds of rightwing and libertarian activists expected to gather in London to press for deeper cuts to public spending.
The TaxPayers' Alliance is bringing its lorry-mounted debt clock to the rally.
Hundreds of pro-cuts activists are expected to descend on Westminster on Saturday to "rally against debt", in the first sign of a radical Tea Party-style mass movement to challenge the anti-cuts lobby.
The protest will be attended by an alliance of rightwing and libertarian activists including members of the TaxPayers' Alliance (TPA), the anti-Europe UK Independence party and the Freedom Association, a libertarian pressure group set up by Norris McWhirter, better known for co-founding the Guinness Book of Records.
More than 1,000 people have indicated online that they plan to attend and many said they believed the government was not cutting public spending deeply enough. The Conservative MPs Priti Patel and Bill Cash and the Ukip leader, Nigel Farage, are due to make speeches, and Toby Young, the broadcaster and free school pioneer, said he would attend.
The action comes amid a growing interest among rightwing groups in learning from the US Tea Party movement, which has mobilised hundreds of thousands of activists to march against Barack Obama's policies. Electoral Commission records show that in March Ukip activists registered the name Tea Party as a political party. It is not yet active but they said they could field candidates in general elections, byelection or local elections.
"We have seen the Tea Party in the States and although I am not sure if it would take off here … we have set it up so we feel we can use it any time we want to get it off the ground," said Michael McGough, national executive committee member of Ukip, who will attend the rally. "If we have to bail out Greece then there may be potential in the longer term, so we have got it in reserve for when we need it."
Last year it emerged that the TPA was being advised by Freedom Works, a powerful Washington organisation credited with helping to destabilise the Obama administration through its mobilisation of 800,000 grassroots activists under the Tea Party banner.
"We are into freedom, small government, independence of the individual and low tax and low spending," said Annabelle Fuller, a former assistant to Farage, who initiated the rally after being "completely appalled" by the TUC's March for the Alternative, which attracted 500,000 people to London in March. "I was incredibly frustrated that the debate was about whether you could cope with the cuts or not because actually there are people happy with this policy and we want more."
Organisers have been urging activists to carry placards saying: "Stop spending my money", "Reckless waste bankrupting Britain" and "Wake up to Britain's debt".
The TPA, which calls for low tax and spending and has donors in common with the Conservative party, will bring its lorry-mounted debt clock, which constantly updates the national debt. It has urged its 55,000 supporters to turn out, citing three reasons: the "immorality" of living beyond our means and passing on debt to the next generation; taxes should pay for services, not debt interest; and UK taxpayers should not have to pay for bailouts of failing eurozone countries.
The pro-cuts activists will include Mark Littlewood, the former Lib Dem spokesman and now director of the Institute for Economic Affairs free-market thinktank, and Ruth Lea, the high-profile economist.
Littlewood said: "There seems to be a belief that the only reason we are in these problems is the behaviour of a few bankers in 2008, but it is down to collective greed of the voting population of this country. We need considerably more cuts. Public spending is out of control. This isn't a government-sponsored rally by any means. Even if their cuts were carried through in full they will not solve this huge dead weight of debt."
He said it was morally wrong to expect future generations to pay off the debt. Anti-cuts activists are understood to be considering mounting informal counter-demonstrations.
©guardian.co.uk
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