It may sound obvious, even trite, but it’s the only way out. The primary purpose of economic policy for the next five years should be to generate revenue.
John Stevenson MP, Dehenna Davison MP and Jake Berry MP discuss the economic, social and political future of the North of England.
Our next live online event features Jake Berry, Dehenna Davison and John Stevenson, leading lights of the Northern Research Group.
It might seem far-fetched that one could face jail for eating steak frites. But one could have said the same about not eating at least a scotch egg with your pint.
Every MP wants to make sure restrictions in their area are as limited as possible. But we’re close to the end now. Let’s not fall near the finish line.
The OBR’s horrid forecasts of an output implosion and soaring unemployment will do nothing to quell Tory resistance to tougher Covid tiers.
America’s result is having knock-on effects in Downing Street: see yesterday’s green speech and today’s defence news.
Publishing the figures will underline that Ministers are striving to be balanced. Never mind how it looks, though: better statistics will lead to better decisions.
And when it comes to paying for the crisis measures, as we must, taxes must not fall on younger workers.
To make best use of public funds, we should capitalise on those sectors where we already have a world-leading position.
Consequently, our third and most important priority is the vigorous pursuit of growth – set our country on a path of solid and sustained expansion.
A conventional budget of tax rises and spending cuts sizeable enough to begin to make our national debt affordable will constrict growth.
The Treasury should hold one as the year rolls on, along the lines of that undertaken by Canada’s government during the 1990s.
Modest consolidation over decades is one thing; large increases over a Parliament would be quite another.
Before pumping more funding into the public sector, we must restore the habit of making sure we have the money in the bank before we start spending it.