I very much welcome the Chancellor’s Spring Statement which shows that, despite the challenges over Brexit, the economy is resilient creating jobs and delivering the fastest rate of wage growth in over a decade. I am pleased that the economy is expected to grow this year and every year over the next five years, reaching 1.6 percent in the three years leading up to 2023.
Phillip Hammond expressed his disappointment that Mrs May’s deal did not pass through the House this week but he said he was pleased to report some promising news on the economy. He told MPs that the deficit has been revised down in each of the next five years and that the deficit is expected to be £3 billion lower than expected in 2019. Good news on wages too. Mr Hammond said that wages will rise faster than previously expected and growing faster than prices in each of the next five years whilst reaching a record high of 3.3 per cent growth in 2023.
The Chancellor painted a promising picture on employment too, which he said will continue to rise with more than 600,000 news jobs by 2023, meaning there will be 4.1 million more people in work by 2023 than there were in 2010. He predicted that the economy will grow every year reaching 1.2 per cent this year, which is faster than in Germany, accelerating to 1.6 per cent in each of the final three years.
We have been through two very difficult years and this news is really very encouraging. It’s important we get a deal with the EU in the next few weeks so that we can concentrate on building on these solid foundations. These positive steps are a result of our strong Conservative economic policies. If we followed Labour we would, without a shadow of doubt, have fewer jobs, higher taxes on working families and high unemployment totalling an extra £1,000 billion in borrowing and taxes. However, if we pull together to get Brexit behind us our bright future is within our grasp.
