Out and about with the Prime Minister on his round-England trip today and you are very struck, listening to him addressing a business breakfast this morning in Leeds, by a sense of economic optimism.
Not just a sense that the Budget growth predictions could be right but that they could be exceeded.
That would mean sustained growth on a level not seen since the dotcom bubble or the Lawson boom – to pluck two ominous precedents from history.
There is a belief that the financial sector could bounce back stronger than expected, that UK plc has the right sectors to make something extraordinary of the growth opportunities round the corner.
I’m getting positively light-headed.
The PM on tour:
Commentsoldest first
Given his track record and his inability to see what everyone else is seeing, why bother reporting his optimism?
All of his other recent predictions have failed miserably.
We are in a deep recession – we are not out of it yet – by a very long way.
Ask him about freezing student support for those who need it most.
Ask him about leaving postal workers without a pension
Ask him about why his Chancellor is being sidelined by an unelected peer who had to resign twice from government in disgrace.
Get some real answers to some real questions – we know you can do it
Who’s he trying to kid?!
Try telling those who are joining the millions out of work or benefit.
Ha, ha, ha. Very amusing. Why not ask him about the disparity between figures when NuLab took over and today
Unemployment -
1997 2.050 million
2009 2.261 million
CPI inflation -
1997 1.6%
2009 2.2%
Balance of trade -
1997 2.039 billion surplus
2009 8.267 billion deficit
Public sector borrowing -
1997 3.822 billion
2009 19.861 billion
Industrial output – (base 2003=100)
1997 99.3
2009 88.2
Manufacturing employment -
1997 4.528 million
2009 2.942 million
Public sector employment -
1997 6.676 million
2009 8.145 million
???????????
Hat tip to plato-says.blogspot.com
I’d rather see realism and pragmatism from political leaders than optimism. It’s a much healthier starting point for policy decisions…
Leave a comment
* Required field.