REGIONAL Secretary Alan Manning today demanded that the Government turn away from its austerity programme and invest in policies for growth and jobs.
Mr Manning, leader of the North West TUC which represents one million working people in the region, was reacting to today’s 0.2 per cent growth figures for the UK – worse than had been feared.
He said: “We are now on the edge of a double dip recession, with the economy flatlining, public services being dismantled and unemployment increasing. The message for Chancellor George Osborne is clear: ‘It’s hurting, but it’s not working.’
“We are now staring over a cliff into recession – the Government needs to pull back immediately. Our economy is deep in the doldrums and we desperately need policies for growth and jobs to get people back to work, paying taxes and spending money.
“These official figures are in stark contrast to the forecasts made by the Government 18 months ago when they set out on this disastrous road to recession with their austerity programme.
“At the time of the spending review, they said the economy would grow by 3.6 per cent – the reality is that the economy has been worsening ever since. In the last three months, there has also been a 0.9 per cent fall in manufacturing, with industrial production down by 1.2 per cent.
“With the budget due in March, we are now at real risk of a double dip recession – something the TUC has warned about for the last 18 months.
“It is time for the Government to turn away from austerity and take positive steps to stimulate our economy – with policies for jobs and growth, a tax on bankers’ bonuses and a Robin Hood tax so that working people do not pay the prices for a bankers’ recession.”
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