Economist, Visiting Professor, Lecturer, Writer, Public Speaker.
Even with one of the largest parliamentary majorities in its history and the Conservatives with their lowest-ever vote share, the incoming Labour administration faces a daunting task: improving UK economic growth. It knows that was why it was elected; after all, growing the economy through increased productivity was the focus of its election campaign. It …
Continue reading “An historic election win but big challenges loom”
It’s hard to find anything to like in the Autumn Statement delivered by Jeremy Hunt. While on the surface, the 2% cut in National Insurance contributions seems like a good idea, it looks worse the more you examine what it means and its implications. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) references to the ‘headroom’ to …
Continue reading “An election Budget that does not address UK challenges”
As expected by current financial markets pricing, the Bank of England (BOE) raised interest rates to 5% in June, half a per cent up from the May level of 4.5%. The increase was not unanimous, just as the previous one was not, with two members voting to leave rates at 4.5%. Interestingly, the two members …
Continue reading “Bank rate overkill? Could a 5% rise trigger recession?”