Fall in investment suggests higher growth could be short lived, says TUC
Commenting on the latest quarterly GDP figures published today (Friday) which show growth of 0.6% for July to September, but a significant fall in business investment, TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:
“The Chancellor said this week that growth is the best way for the government to balance the books. But stronger growth is unlikely to last if we do not close the investment gap with other industrial nations. And today’s figures show a worrying fall in business investment.
"The government should set up a National Investment Bank to upgrade Britain's infrastructure. This would help raise productivity, giving a boost to growth and wages.
“And it’s time to fully end austerity. Schools, hospitals and other services are a vital part of Britain’s economy. If they remain starved of resources, the rest of the economy will continue to struggle too.”
- The Chancellor gave evidence to the Treasury Committee on Monday this week and said: “We have to get debt down as a percentage of GDP, and there is a very hard way of doing it, which is running a budget surplus every year and paying off the cash debt. There is a much easier way of doing it, which is get the economy growing faster with higher trend productivity growth, so that the denominator increases. That is the smart way to shrink our debt as a proportion of our GDP: grow the GDP, strong real wage growth, rising living standards.” See Q204 here: http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidencedocument/treasury-committee/budget-2018/oral/92275.html
- The TUC published analysis in September showing that the UK ranks poorly for both public and private investment compared to other OECD nations, and below the OECD average in every sector of the economy. The full analysis is here: https://www.tuc.org.uk/news/uk-near-bottom-oecd-rankings-national-investment
- The Trades Union Congress (TUC) exists to make the working world a better place for everyone. We bring together more than 5.5 million working people who make up our 49 member unions. We support unions to grow and thrive, and we stand up for everyone who works for a living.
Stay Updated
Want to hear about our latest news and blogs?
Sign up now to get it straight to your inbox