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CBI unveils plans for UK growth

A UK business body wants the Chancellor to deliver a plan for balancing the budget by 2015.

The Confederation of British Industries believes that doing so would boost investor confidence and get the UK on the path to recovery.

But it is warning that the government will need to take an extra £120bn out of current spending plans to balance the books.

The CBI says £50bn will need to be found between now and 2013 to allow for a slower economic recovery than the government is predicting, and a further £70bn will be needed after 2013 in order to balance the budget by 2015-16, rather than by 2017-18 as set out in the April Budget.

The CBI is setting out its strategy for getting the UK’s economy growing again ahead of the Pre-Budget Report. It involves bringing the public finances back into balance, a new approach to the delivery of public services, and introducing low-cost measures to position the economy for recovery.

Sarah Green, Regional Director, CBI North East, said: “We have identified how the required savings might be achieved by re-engineering the ways in which public services are delivered. By introducing new technology and competition, eliminating waste and inefficiency, and tackling unaffordable pensions and pay head on, we can avoid crude cuts to frontline staff and the vital services on which we all depend.

“With firms still facing challenging conditions and credit still not flowing freely around the economy, there are a number of relatively low-cost measures the government could adopt to help.

“Delaying some business tax rises that are in the pipeline and making some sensible regulatory changes would give businesses the headroom to recover, so they can help drive economic growth and support jobs.”

For more information for to the CBI website.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .