Britain’s economy is suffering from a “sprained ankle”, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt suggested – as he rejected the diagnosis of a “broken leg”.
His comments came while appearing at the Resolution Foundation conference, as the influential think tank released a report Huge scale of economic problems.
The UK saw it 15 years of relative decline – Productivity growth at half the rate of other developed economies.
The lowest-income households in the UK have a standard of living of £4,300 less than their French equivalents, the report said, with the average worker seeing £10,700 a year in lost pay rises.
The nearly 300-page report also warns that while household incomes are not expected to reach their pre-cost-of-life crisis peak until 2027, income inequality in the UK is higher than in any other major European country.
But Mr Hunt wanted to give a better perspective during a question-and-answer session with the editor-in-chief. Economist Magazine Zanny Minton Beddoes.
An audience member asked why the think tank was “describing an economy with a broken leg” when the “surgeon in chief” disagreed.
“I think it’s really important not to lose our confidence,” Mr Hunt responded. “I’m not sure I’d describe it as a broken leg but identify areas where we can do better.
“And it’s a very good thing for us that we do it. But sometimes we forget that other countries also have things they need to improve.”
He added: “I think we should not lose confidence that we do some things absolutely amazingly. I know he’s controversial in other ways but when Elon Musk was here three weeks ago, he said there were only two centers in the world for AI, San Francisco and London.
“There’s a lot going for us – so if we’re going to deal with a sprain instead of a broken leg, let’s do it from a positive perspective.”
Elsewhere in the discussion, Mr Hunt laid the blame Brexit And covid At the heart of government is an epidemic of pernicious instability.
“I think there’s a very particular reason why we’ve had the political chopping and changing – I don’t think it’s a good thing,” the chancellor admitted of the Tory turmoil of recent years.
“But we had Brexit, which led to a hung parliament, which led to an incredibly challenging period politically where the British people voted to leave the EU but parliament couldn’t agree how and ultimately the fall of Theresa May’s government,” he said.
“Then we had an epidemic, these things changed Whitehall. I hope we can bring more stability going forward, absolutely, because I think that’s a good thing for policy.”
Mr Hunt stressed his focus was on productivity and growth.
“Can we do more? absolutely I think in every financial event I’ve done I’ve proven that I’m ready to do big, new things,” he said. “In the long run the only way you can raise living standards is to increase productivity,” he said at the event.
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