British Minister: Brexit is a Catalyst For a New Era of Growth

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt today dismissed claims of a recession in the British economy, promising that Brexit will “catalyze” a new era of growth, Reuters reported.
Hant, who stabilized financial markets after the turmoil surrounding former Prime Minister Liz Trus’s “mini-budget” in September last year, hinted that he will stick to tax increases in the upcoming annual budget, which has infuriated some MPs in the ruling Conservative Party.

He reiterated his ambition to create a “new Silicon Valley”.

“Our plan for growth is necessary, fueled and enabled by Brexit,” Hant said in a speech at Bloomberg’s London headquarters.

The agency notes that there are six weeks to go before the budget is adopted on March 15th, and that Hant’s party rating is far behind the opposition Labour Party, ahead of the elections expected next year.

Hant said he wants lower taxes, but that healthy money must come first.

Trust in the future begins with honesty towards the present and we should not shy away from the biggest challenge we are facing, which is our poor productivity – said Hunt.

Labour party’s financial spokesperson Rachel Reeves said the Conservatives have been recording 13 years of economic failure.

“The Tories have no plan for now, nor plan for the future” she said in a statement.

Official figures show that Britain is the only G7 economy that has failed to recover its pre-pandemic growth rate by the third quarter of 2022.

Most economists say that Brexit has so far contributed to weak business investment, trade and economic performance of the country.

Hunt confirmed that reforms in European Union regulations and the newly adopted European Parliament’s Solvency II Directive will be implemented in the coming months, allowing investors to invest more in the economy.

“With volatile markets and high inflation, sound money must come first” he said, adding that the priority is to fight inflation.

The British minister expressed concern about the US Inflation Reduction Act, which came into effect this year and provides for hundreds of billions of dollars in green economy subsidies.

Yes, we are worried about the Inflation Reduction Act, and the reason is because we believe in free trade – said Hant, responding to a journalist’s question if the government has sought ways to help British companies promoting a green economy.

• But are we worried about the long-term future of our clean energy industry – absolutely not – said Hant.

Asked if he will offer his own subsidies, Hant said he is sure they will present a package that makes Britain highly competitive, but that he does not think subsidies are “necessarily the best way”.

• I think what people want is creativity, innovation, ideas. And the climate, or regular framework, encourages investments – said the British minister.

The European Union had earlier expressed serious concerns about the planned US administration investment of 369 billion dollars for climate change mitigation and announced its own plans for subsidizing the green industry, in order to prevent firms from leaving for the United States.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned that the European Union must respond to the Inflation Reduction Act, in order to stabilize the global market and economy.

She said that the EU needs to adapt its rules and facilitate investment in green energy.