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Gordon Brown defended the government's economic record at prime minister's questions this afternoon.
The tax status of the Conservative party candidate for Richmond Park, Zac Goldsmith, was raised by Brown during exchanges with Tory leader David Cameron.
Cameron began by asking about Afghanistan.
He welcomed US President Obama's announcement on Tuesday of a troop surge in the country and asked what it would mean for British troops.
Cameron asked if the UK will now concentrate more of their troops in fewer areas.
The prime minister said the whole House welcomed the Obama commitment that 30,000 American troops would be deployed quickly in Afghanistan.
"A substantial number of troops going to Helmand," he said.
Brown said British troops will be more densely deployed and will continue the "vital task of partnering and mentoring Afghan forces".
He said at present there are 200,000 Afghan, American, British and coalition troops in the country, and with the surge will mean that the transfer of control to Afghan forces will start in 2010.
Cameron said that comments from the prime minister at the weekend that at least five provinces would be under Afghan control by the end of next year was "widely seen as indicating withdrawal by 2010".
He called for clarity, as Obama had said the withdrawal of US forces will not being before the middle of 2011.
Brown said he made it "perfectly clear" that there is no question of British troops leaving until the Afghan forces are strong enough to take over.
He said that by 2011 there will be 300,000 troops and "at that point the balance will start to change".
Cameron then turned to the economy. He said Britain is the last country in the G20 to move out of recession.
The prime minister said Spain is a member of G20 and it is one of six European nations still in recession.
Brown said Cameron "must have policy to put forward, or he is simply talking down Britain".
Cameron replied that it was Brown's policies that had led to the longest and deepest recession in history.
"Only he thinks we should be pathetically grateful," he said.
"France and Germany went into recession at same time but came out before.
Brown said he had yet to hear "one policy from the opposition".
He said they opposed fiscal stimulus, the Northern Rock bailout and other measures.
"They were wrong on the recession and they will be wrong on the recovery."
Cameron said the one policy we need "is to get the biggest deficit in the G20 under control".
He said Brown's claims that he had abolished boom and bust and that the UK was the best-prepared country to weather the recession and that he had led the world to economic recovery were "absolute rubbish".
The prime minister replied:
"The more he talks, the less he actually says."
He accused the Tories of having no policies except cutting inheritance tax and a domestic policy that "helps non-doms avoid tax".
Cameron replied that the only person to have made a specific pledge on inheritance tax is the prime minister who proposes to raise the threshold to £350,000. He asked if Brown still plans to do that.
The prime minister said the proposed Tory inheritance tax cut would cost the UK £2bn.
He said the choice was between public services for the many or tax cuts for the few.
"With him and Mr Goldsmith, his inheritance policy was dreamed up on the playing fields of Eton."
The Liberal Democrat leader welcomed President Obama's speech on Afghanistan.
Nick Clegg said Obama had set a "very tight timetable indeed" for the new military strategy and surge.
It was important not to rely too heavily on Afghan president Hamid Karzai, he added.
Clegg also called for regional powers such as Russia and Iran to be invited to the London Conference on Afghanistan set for January 28.
"It would be better to have a strategy working around Karzai, relying on local and regional political leadership,” Clegg said.
To laughter around the Commons, Brown said the President of the United States would no doubt be grateful for the leader of the third party's endorsement.
"He is absolutely right that we have to both weaken the Taliban and strengthen the Afghan state," Brown told Clegg.
Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd