10 ways to promote growth

Article

A plan for growth should start by identifying what is needed for the economy to grow. The 10 measures set out here would represent a start, but more will need to be done to promote growth and ensure that the UK returns to full employment as soon as possible.

Growth in the short-term requires additional demand and only the government is in a position to provide it. Growth in the medium term requires increasing supplies of capital, labour and land, and better ways of utilising them. It will not be easy.

The government has published a Growth Review and a Plan for Growth, which it is now reviewing. But the economy is barely growing. Each of these documents suffered from the same basic weakness. Each started from a set of measures agreed between the coalition partners - cuts in corporate tax rates, an increase in the personal tax allowance, aggressive budget deficit reduction - and attempted to build a growth plan around them. This is the wrong approach.

A longer companion piece to this paper - The state of the economy - discusses the outlook for the economy, its strengths and weaknesses, and the opportunities and threats that it faces.

Related items

  1. Scotland: Taxed enough already? Maybe not

    It is possible to make the case for progressive increases in income tax while in government. You can win the argument, and the world won’t come to an end.  
  2. The Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, River Thames and Westminster Bridge

    Fairness first: How the budget can make life better and the economy stronger

    The chancellor faces a daunting task at the upcoming budget. A fiscal gap sets the stage, putting the chancellor in the unenviable position of having to raise taxes.
  3. A row of red brick Victorian houses with panoramic views across to the skyscrapers and financial district of the city of London

    Towards a fair and proportional property tax