Adam Afriyie, the MP for Windsor, has welcomed the Government’s Spring Statement, the annual statement updating Parliament on its spending priorities for the year ahead. This will be the final such economic update before the UK leaves the European Union on 29^th March 2019.

Key economic indicators announced in this statement include:

• The UK’s GDP is predicted to grow in each of the next 5 years and is experiencing the longest unbroken quarterly period of growth in the G7.
• 3.5m net new jobs have been created since the Conservatives entered Government in 2010.
• The budget deficit will be 1.1% of GDP in 2019, compared to over 10% under the last Labour Government.
• The national debt will fall in each of the next 5 years, from 82.2% next year to 73% in 2023/24.

 

The Spring Statement also announced new measures to boost the economy, including:

• A new General Export Facility for to provide short-term support for UK exporters.
• A review by the Competition and Markets Authority on how regulation affects competition between businesses.
• An exemption for PhD level occupations from the Tier 2 Visa cap.
• £200m in targeted investment in scientific areas to ensure that the UK remains on the cutting edge of industries of the future, such as AI, Big Data and Photonics.

 

The MP for the Windsor constituency, Adam Afriyie welcomed the figures:

“The Spring Statement confirmed that the UK’s economy is robust, and our jobs market buoyant. This is reinforced by a Government that is pro-investment, pro-enterprise, pro-NHS and, above all, imbued with a strong commitment to fiscal discipline.

“I was particularly pleased by the announcements on measures to promote trade so that the UK remains open to high-skilled workers from overseas.

“The commitment to fund immediately provide an additional £100m to police forces to tackle knife crime also shows a Government committed to tackling danger and violence on our streets.

“The Chancellor has confirmed that austerity is over but fiscal discipline is not. Having made tough decisions that have resulted in the budget deficit falling from over 10% to approximately 1%, the last thing we should do is undo this hard work by increasing spending unsustainably. Low taxes, low regulation and an open trade policy are the route to economic prosperity and leaving the EU provides the perfect platform to an ambitious, global Britain.”

 

ENDS 

Note to editors

• Adam Afriyie has been Member of Parliament for Windsor since 2005.
• He lives in Old Windsor with his wife and five children.
• At the 2017 General Election, Adam was returned with the greatest number of votes in the history of the constituency, and the highest share of the vote since the 1950s.
• He is Patron of Berkshire Young Enterprise, Sebastian's Action Trust, and Chandler Day Centre.
• He has been a Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy since 2016.
• He has a strong background in international business, having founded multiple companies outside of the UK.