http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20090423/tts-finance-economy-britain-politics-bud-cac1e9b.html
Britain forecasts economy to shrink fastest since WWII
AFP
AFP - 2 hours 26 minutes ago
LONDON (AFP) - - The British economy will shrink this year at the fastest rate since 1945 and suffer sky-high public debt as a result of the global financial crisis, finance minister Alistair Darling forecast Wednesday.
ADVERTISEMENT
However, Chancellor of the Exchequer Darling, delivering his second budget to the House of Commons, predicted the economy would return to growth in late 2009 and would expand by 1.25 percent in 2010.
But he slashed the Labour government's gross domestic product (GDP) forecast for 2009 to a contraction of 3.5 percent -- the worst performance for 64 years.
Darling also slapped the country's top earners with a 50-percent income rate tax after warning that public borrowing would balloon to a record 175 billion pounds (197 billion euros, 256 billion dollars) in 2009-10.
The budget also included a 1.7-billion-pound scheme aimed at helping people back into work amid soaring unemployment, and plans to boost Britain's struggling housing and auto sectors.
"We and other countries have been battling against a succession of shocks which have hit the world economy," Darling told lawmakers.
"At the end of 2007, problems in international mortgage markets began to put a damaging squeeze on credit.
"Last autumn, the dramatic failure of one of the top investment banks in America, Lehman Brothers, shattered already fragile confidence and brought the international financial system to its knees.
"Since then, an extraordinary international financial crisis has fed into the wider economy, causing a steep and widespread world recession."
The finance chief, whose party is trailing the main opposition Conservatives in the polls ahead of a general election next year, added that the economy would grow by 3.5 percent in 2011.
But Darling sounded a cautious note about the burgeoning economic and financial crisis, warning: "There are no quick fixes. No overnight solutions."
Analysts had expected Darling to say that growth would not resume until 2010 amid the worst global downturn since the Great Depression in the 1930s.
Meanwhile, in line with several other European countries, Britain will launch a car-scrapping scheme from next month worth 2,000 pounds per car.
The chancellor, who took over as finance minister when Gordon Brown became premier in 2007, vowed that the government would "build on the outcome of the G20 summit in London this month."
He added: "The action already taken here, and internationally, and the measures I will announce today, mean that I expect the economy to start growing again towards the end of the year."
The British government has pumped billions of pounds into struggling banks since the credit crunch first erupted in late 2007, snapping up major stakes in Lloyds Banking Group and the Royal Bank of Scotland.
"Many countries have also intervened to strengthen their banking systems," Darling added.
"My public finances forecasts today include a provisional estimate for the potential cost of this -- totalling 3.5 percent of GDP."
The leader of Britain's biggest union Unite, Derek Simpson, said Darling deserved credit.
"Alistair Darling had to deliver the toughest budget in decades but he has positioned Labour as the party for jobs and social justice while exposing the Tories for being the party of cuts and inequality," Simpson said.
But ahead of the budget, official economic data showed worsening unemployment and surging public borrowing as Britain struggles with recession.
Official data Wednesday showed Britain's public borrowing had soared to a record 90 billion pounds in 2008-09 as the government bailed out banks and tried to tame the recession.
"Around the world, fiscal deficits and government debt have been rising sharply to levels not seen since the Second World War," Darling added.
"This is a response to an unprecedented financial crisis and a deep and widespread global recession.
"Allowing borrowing to rise -- protecting services, helping people and businesses -- is the right thing to do."
The recession has hit the Treasury hard because of slumping tax revenues and last year's decision to slash sales tax (VAT) on goods and services to boost consumer spending.
Britain forecasts economy to shrink fastest since WWII
AFP
AFP - 2 hours 26 minutes ago
LONDON (AFP) - - The British economy will shrink this year at the fastest rate since 1945 and suffer sky-high public debt as a result of the global financial crisis, finance minister Alistair Darling forecast Wednesday.
ADVERTISEMENT
However, Chancellor of the Exchequer Darling, delivering his second budget to the House of Commons, predicted the economy would return to growth in late 2009 and would expand by 1.25 percent in 2010.
But he slashed the Labour government's gross domestic product (GDP) forecast for 2009 to a contraction of 3.5 percent -- the worst performance for 64 years.
Darling also slapped the country's top earners with a 50-percent income rate tax after warning that public borrowing would balloon to a record 175 billion pounds (197 billion euros, 256 billion dollars) in 2009-10.
The budget also included a 1.7-billion-pound scheme aimed at helping people back into work amid soaring unemployment, and plans to boost Britain's struggling housing and auto sectors.
"We and other countries have been battling against a succession of shocks which have hit the world economy," Darling told lawmakers.
"At the end of 2007, problems in international mortgage markets began to put a damaging squeeze on credit.
"Last autumn, the dramatic failure of one of the top investment banks in America, Lehman Brothers, shattered already fragile confidence and brought the international financial system to its knees.
"Since then, an extraordinary international financial crisis has fed into the wider economy, causing a steep and widespread world recession."
The finance chief, whose party is trailing the main opposition Conservatives in the polls ahead of a general election next year, added that the economy would grow by 3.5 percent in 2011.
But Darling sounded a cautious note about the burgeoning economic and financial crisis, warning: "There are no quick fixes. No overnight solutions."
Analysts had expected Darling to say that growth would not resume until 2010 amid the worst global downturn since the Great Depression in the 1930s.
Meanwhile, in line with several other European countries, Britain will launch a car-scrapping scheme from next month worth 2,000 pounds per car.
The chancellor, who took over as finance minister when Gordon Brown became premier in 2007, vowed that the government would "build on the outcome of the G20 summit in London this month."
He added: "The action already taken here, and internationally, and the measures I will announce today, mean that I expect the economy to start growing again towards the end of the year."
The British government has pumped billions of pounds into struggling banks since the credit crunch first erupted in late 2007, snapping up major stakes in Lloyds Banking Group and the Royal Bank of Scotland.
"Many countries have also intervened to strengthen their banking systems," Darling added.
"My public finances forecasts today include a provisional estimate for the potential cost of this -- totalling 3.5 percent of GDP."
The leader of Britain's biggest union Unite, Derek Simpson, said Darling deserved credit.
"Alistair Darling had to deliver the toughest budget in decades but he has positioned Labour as the party for jobs and social justice while exposing the Tories for being the party of cuts and inequality," Simpson said.
But ahead of the budget, official economic data showed worsening unemployment and surging public borrowing as Britain struggles with recession.
Official data Wednesday showed Britain's public borrowing had soared to a record 90 billion pounds in 2008-09 as the government bailed out banks and tried to tame the recession.
"Around the world, fiscal deficits and government debt have been rising sharply to levels not seen since the Second World War," Darling added.
"This is a response to an unprecedented financial crisis and a deep and widespread global recession.
"Allowing borrowing to rise -- protecting services, helping people and businesses -- is the right thing to do."
The recession has hit the Treasury hard because of slumping tax revenues and last year's decision to slash sales tax (VAT) on goods and services to boost consumer spending.
