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Written question asked by Lord Birt (Crossbench) on Monday, 27 November 2017, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Monday, 11 December 2017. It was answered by Lord Bates (Conservative) on Tuesday, 5 December 2017 on behalf of the Treasury.

Economic Situation

Question

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the findings released by the European Commission on 30 October showing that industry and consumer confidence in the Eurozone economies is at its highest level for 17 years, and (2) prospects for growth in the those economies; and what comparative assessment they have made of (a) confidence in the economy, and (b) prospects for growth, in the UK, following the Office for Budget Responsibility's announcement that the UK economy will not grow as fast as previously forecast.

Answer

The Treasury continuously monitors global and European economic developments as part of the normal process of domestic policy development.

Euro area growth has become increasingly robust in recent quarters. This has helped boost economic sentiment, as the European Commission’s publication on 30 October notes. They consider that the outlook for euro area growth remains positive; growth forecasts were revised up for the euro area in the Autumn Forecast, released November 9.

The UK economy is also fundamentally strong. The economy has grown for 19 consecutive quarters, employment is close to a record high and the deficit has been cut by three quarters. UK consumer confidence has been relatively stable over the last six months. However there is more to do: improving our productivity remains the key to raising living standards over the long term. That is why we have invested over a quarter of a trillion pounds in infrastructure, cut taxes to support business investment and reformed technical education.

The UK welcomes the stronger macroeconomic outlook for the euro area. It is in Britain’s interest to see a stable and prosperous euro area

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL3600
Session
2017-19
Subjects
Economic situation Economic and monetary union
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk