In the UK, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has signalled a kind of U-turn by scrapping his plans to cut tax credits and offering more money for the health service, for defence and for the police. This seems to be the end of his austerity planning – though he says he still intends to cut the deficit by the end of this parliament.
I’m not an economist so I tend to think in simple – perhaps even simplistic – terms. I can see the sense in not spending more than you earn – at the personal, at the organisational and at the national level.
I also know that the Uk needs to improve its productivity. The best way the government can help do that is to get the macro-economic climate right, to cut regulation and to invest in infrastructure.
So, George, what are you doing there?