Treasury Adviser Suggests The UK Is Nearing A Recession
On the face of it the announcement by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) that they believe the UK is on the verge of a recession may be discounted by many, this all changes when you consider the fact that they are part of the Bank of England advisory team. The NIESR has confirmed that the UK economy grew by just 0.2% in the last quarter, a large drop from the 0.6% growth seen in the previous quarter.
The official definition of a recession is ‘negative growth in two consecutive quarters’ and while the UK is not quite there yet, the next few months could see some serious pressure on the economy. The NIESR also commented upon the threat from inflation, joining the bandwagon which suggests that the Bank of England will not be able to reduce interest rates until inflation is under control – whenever that may be.
This is yet a further blow to the financial prowess of Gordon Brown, a man who built his reputation on a policy of increasing taxes while the economy was growing, but did not think to ‘put some aside for a rainy day’. Each downbeat report on the future of the UK economy deals a further blow to his already battered reputation.
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