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Speaking at the Association of British Insurers' biennial conference, he said the current government's U-turns on taxation had undermined confidence in the certainty of the tax system in the last 12 years.

Mr Osborne said: "I do not want a Conservative government to make the same mistakes. That is why I have said we will adopt the key proposals of a report I commissioned from Lord Howe (of Aberavon) on reforming the way we make tax law.

"Those include a new requirement that all technical changes will have to be published at the pre-Budget report ahead of the Budget, with proper parliamentary scrutiny able to take evidence from outside experts.

"We will also make use of the expertise available in the tax professions with secondees working together with officials in a new Office for Tax Simplification whose remit will be the systematic simplification of the existing tax code.

"Reducing uncertainty is one important step towards rebuilding our savings culture."

He told the conference of 522 industry and insurance experts at the Grange St Paul's Hotel in London on Tuesday morning he wanted to abolish the basic rate tax on savings income, increase the inheritance tax threshold to £1m, abolish compulsory annuitisation at the age of 75 and resolve the Equitable Life debacle.

Mr Osborne also expressed "grave concerns" about Personal Accounts.

Also speaking at the conference Archie Kane, chairman of the ABI, said the industry must ensure there is effective co-ordination of regulation internationally.

The state of the nation's finances was also explored during a panel debate.

Dr DeAnne Julius, chairman of Chatham House and former member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee, said: "The housing market has started to function and house prices have come down and interest rates are down too. Short-term we are in a trough, but this picture varies nationwide."

Keith Skeoch, chief executive of Standard Life Investments, said that property will recover if the economy recovers and Paul Tucker, deputy governor of financial stability for the Bank of England, added the MPC does not look at specific parts of the economy when setting interest rates.