Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Simon English: Number crunchers' 1% isn't too obvious down in Dagenham

Simon English
Friday 26 October 2012 02:17 BST
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Outlook: The double-dip is over, so the number-crunchers tell us. Over in Dagenham – a part of the world perhaps not regularly frequented by David Cameron unless there's a photo-op involved – there weren't too many champagne corks popping yesterday. The good folks of Dagenham have the sense to prefer Babycham anyway.

With timing that must have been cursed by Downing Street, Ford announced 1,400 job losses in Dagenham and Southampton.

Spontaneous outpourings of joy on the streets were also notable by their absence in Birmingham, where the local council said this week that more than 1,000 staff were surplus to requirements.

The magic 1 per cent growth between July and September is a chimera: more mathematical than real. When you take into account the Jubilee and Olympics sales, you're not much more than a rounding error away from stagnation. One thing our smooth-skinned PM also wasn't keen to stress yesterday – despite the growth "bonanza" – is that the UK has been flat for the past year. Since the Coalition took office, in fact, the UK has managed an advance of just 1 per cent, and still stands 3.1 per cent below its previous peak. These may not be reasons to boast.

For the future, the outlook is chilly. Virtually every forward-looking indicator of the economy is pointing lower. Businesses cast their eye at the US and the eurozone and they don't like what they see. Fiscal cliffs and Spanish bailouts are hardly confidence boosters.

But don't worry. The economy is "on the right track". Dave says so.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in