The lack of a Conservative Commons majority prevented the Chancellor from doing much more than playing it safe – which he did effectively.
Let’s have Policy Board outside of the constraints of the Government machine – and a commission on what Britain should look like post-Brexit.
“We’ve got to continue to invest in our productivity and Britain’s future, but we’ve also got to listen to the noise we’re hearing from individuals and organisations about the pressures they’re facing.”
The Chancellor needs to help deliver the sense of direction so strikingly absent in Manchester last month, and indeed since last June’s election.
The Chancellor should also support life-long learning through training vouchers, and offer tax breaks for politically independent trade unions.
The second piece in the author’s series on the coming economic revolution proposes a series of policies to turbo-charge the post-Brexit economy.
Some employers have been doing very nicely out of labour which puts up with low pay, poor conditions and little flexibility in their hours.
Voters aren’t focusing on the constitution, but on the SNP’s record in Government. We must be ready to capitalise on this by telling then the truth.
The Government must do much more to promote universities, apprenticeships and FE colleagues equally to ensure that young people get the skills they need.
Between 1997 and 2005, public sector spending rose from £336 billion to £517 billion a year. But its output has increased little, so its productivity has fallen dramatically.
We should seek the closest possible relationship with the EU and an open trade policy. Firms need confidence to invest.
The Chancellor has not always been well treated by his neighbour, and deserves support over public spending. But he has mishandled his internal position over Brexit.
Behind the ‘jobs miracle’ lies a system, built on tax credits, which subsidises low pay and encourages businesses to over-hire at the expense of investment.
One place where there is unlikely to be any dithering is the West Midlands. The prospect of someone like Andy Street becoming mayor is hugely exciting.
It continues to clear the deficit, prepare for Brexit, and back our businesses with the support they need to boost productivity.