Hopefully, whoever suggested the line about a ‘trillion-pound wealth fund’ to the person in charge of the UK's public finances will be suitably embarrassed by now. But I suspect not. One of the Burnham government’s most rational decisions so far has been to green light production from the Jackdaw gas field. The UK will need … Continue reading The ‘missing’ trillion-pound UK sovereign wealth fund is pure fantasy
Tag: Budget
Weekly wrap – Budget fears might ease, but Brexit uncertainty is back
Including thoughts on the Budget, government bond yields, the folly of reopening the Brexit debate, some better news on UK growth, the OBR 15 years on, and Zack Polanski’s grasp of basic economics... Theme of the Week Labour sources are suggesting that the new Chancellor, John Healey, is set to delay ‘difficult choices’ with a … Continue reading Weekly wrap – Budget fears might ease, but Brexit uncertainty is back
Weekly wrap: Tax cut talk – the good, the bad, and the ugly
Also including thoughts on the latest Budget speculation, paying interest on reserves, the latest from the OECD and IMF, Carney and Blair’s EU fantasies, and what’s really happening to consumer confidence... Theme of the Week It’s party conference season, so politicians will not let a mere fiscal crisis disrupt the usual competition to see who … Continue reading Weekly wrap: Tax cut talk – the good, the bad, and the ugly
What to make of the new OECD forecasts
The OECD is not really in the forecasting business and its projections are no more interesting than any others. But the consistent policy messages from the OECD and IMF might carry more weight. Frankly, my advice is to ignore the latest OECD projections - they don’t tell us anything that we don’t already know, and … Continue reading What to make of the new OECD forecasts
