Chancellor of the Exchequer, said:
"We are growing the economy, with the IMF saying that from 2025
we will grow faster than Germany, France and Italy.
“But high growth needs low inflation, so we must stick
relentlessly to our plan to halve the rate this year to protect
family budgets."
Additional information:
- Countries around the globe have been shaken by the
consequences of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the energy-price
shock it triggered, and the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
- As a result of these global headwinds, the Euro area and
Germany entered recession in the first quarter of this year and
the IMF are predicting around 90 percent of advanced
economies will see a decline in growth in 2023.
- The OECD has recently joined the IMF, OBR and the Bank of
England in upgrading our growth forecasts and predicting the UK
will avoid recession.
- Since 2010, the UK has grown faster than France, Japan and
Italy, and about the same rate as Germany.
- The OBR said that have said that the measures in the Budget
caused them to revise potential output upwards by the largest
amount ever in their forecasts.
- The Spring Budget tackles two of the biggest issues in UK
productivity – employment levels and business investment – head
on, while also supporting households with cost-of-living
pressures.
- This includes major reforms to help parents back to work with
an expansion of free childcare and a £27 billion tax cut for
business through radical ‘full expensing’ policy and capital
allowances reform, which the IMF say will boost growth.
- We are maintaining record levels of capital investment -
£600bn over the next 5 years – including investment in critical
infrastructure like Northern Powerhouse Rail, HS2 and Sizewell C,
and safeguarding the highest ever R&D budget.
Labour's Shadow Chancellor , responding to the
latest GDP data today said:
“Labour wants to match the ambition of the British people – while
the Tories would rather continue down a path of managed decline
of low growth and high taxes.
“Despite our country's huge potential and promise, today is
another day in the dismal low growth record book of this
Conservative government.
“The facts remain that families are feeling worse off, facing a
soaring Tory mortgage penalty and we're lagging behind on the
global stage.
“Labour's mission to secure the highest sustained growth in the
G7 will make families across every part of our country better
off.”
