Taxes will have to rise if Britain is to balance its books in the timescale offered by Alistair Darling, a think-tank says.
Ian King Deputy Business Editor, Times Online – 6 May 09
The basic rate of income tax will have to rise by between 8p and 10p in the pound if Britain’s public finances are to return to balance in the timescale outlined by the Chancellor in his Budget, a leading think-tank says today.
The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), in its latest quarterly outlook, says that, although Alistair Darling is right to assume that the UK economy will return to growth in the last three months of 2009, he is still being too optimistic about future growth rates.
The NIESR also forecasts that UK unemployment will not peak for another two years. It now expects the jobless total to hit 3.1million in 2011, lifting unemployment to 9.6percent.
It said that its projection relied on average earnings growing very slowly and that, without this adjustment, unemployment would be significantly higher.
But you can be sure it won’t rise before the next election. All this trashy government is interested in is buying its mainly northern and Scottish votes by endless funding of more and more public sector jobs with ever higher salaries. The one thing that terrifies this bunch of losers is in fact the possibility of Scottish independence. Bring it on I say.
Comment by Malcolm Stretten — 7/5/2009 #