'Heartbroken' Bedford and Kempston MP challenges Government on state of the economy

The MP for Bedford and Kempston has today challenged the Government on the state of the UK economy.

An IMF forecast found Britain was the only country in the G7 that would shrink this year.

Mohammad Yasin MP asked James Cartlidge MP, the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury: “Does the Chancellor think Tory Austerity, Tory Brexit, or the Tory Truss Budget is responsible for the unique mess our economy is in, or is it all of the above?”

Mr Cartlidge replied: “Well, as I’ve said, it’s very far from a unique mess when 14 EU countries have a higher rate of inflation than we do. That’s why we have focused on inflation. And just to be clear, that will take some difficult decisions. And I think it would help in that regard if members opposite, instead of living in a parallel universe, with their leadership and their Chancellor, talk about sound money. But not a single one of them ever do, or even venture to understand it. They need to show what difficult decisions they would actually take because that’s how you run a country.”

Britain is the only leading economy likely to slide into recession this year, according to the IMF, which today predicted that UK household spending would falter under the weight of high energy prices, rising mortgage costs and increased taxes.

The fund upgraded its forecasts for most leading economies and said the global outlook had brightened. But it identified the UK as an exception and said the British economy would shrink by 0.5 per cent between the final quarter of 2022 and the final quarter of this year. Even Russia’s economy is now likely to outpace the UK’s, growing one per cent this year.

Following the question in Parliament Mr Yasin said: "How absurd that even the heavily sanctioned Russia is predicted to perform better than we are?”

“And that’s because the Tories inflicted economic sanctions on its own country through Brexit, through their disastrous austerity policy which has links with the strikes over pay we are seeing across the public sector today and the horrific Truss Kwarteng blunder budget that sent mortgage rates spiralling and cost the country £74 billion.

“The treasury minister talked about me living in a parallel universe. I will take no lectures from any Tory Treasury spokesman over managing the economy because frankly, no one could have made a worse job. Tory delusions, fantasies and downright lies about how to make our country better have led to catastrophic economic decisions for our country. What’s worse, is they have no solutions and that’s why the Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt didn’t even bother to turn up to answer today.

“I feel heartbroken for our country which has so many good people and so much potential that it’s come to this.

“The public deserve better, but they also deserve the truth. How can we begin to fix the huge problems in our economy if the Government won’t even acknowledge why we are in this mess. The first move to get the economy back on track is to get the vandals who have recklessly damaged our economy and are holing Britain back out of power, and put a responsible Labour Government in.”