Higher unemployment is a ‘direct consequence’ of Chancellor’s choice says Sir Mel Stride
SHADOW Chancellor Sir Mel Stride has said increasing unemployment is a “direct consequence” of choices made by Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
On President Trump suing the BBC, he told GB News: “I thought he probably would do actually, Eamonn and good morning, because that has been the history of his disputes with other broadcasters in the United States.
“Now, as to whether there’s huge merit in the case in terms of very significant damages or not is another matter, I guess. But what I would say is it is extraordinary that BBC got themselves into this position in the first place, having misrepresented Donald Trump in the way they did in that Panorama program. And of course, whatever this ends up costing is going to be down to the license fee payer.
“I think it’s very unfortunate, and as you say, the BBC did apologise, and heads have rolled. But you know as to where they go from here and what the BBC decides to do in terms of contesting the case, trying to get it struck out, or whatever steps they may take, then I guess that’s an operational matter for them.
“But the whole thing is resting at the door of the BBC, and they clearly, as in other areas of apparent bias, have serious questions to answer.”
Sir Mel Stride GB News 16:12.jpeg
On the rise in the rate of unemployment, he said: “5.1% actually is the highest level since the pandemic, the highest level in five years. And in fact, at the last budget, the OBR, the Office of Budget Responsibility was forecasting that unemployment will be higher in every year going forward than it was at their forecast back in the spring, and this is a direct consequence of the choices that the Chancellor has taken.
“If you tax jobs, National Insurance going up, don’t be surprised, if you kill growth and increase unemployment. They’ve also borrowed and spent large amounts of money that stoked inflation. That means interest rates staying higher for longer, which also weighs down on the economy, and I’m afraid it all shows a party that just does not understand business.
“And you saw that when Rupert Soames, the outgoing president of the CBI, just said in the last 24 hours that he doesn’t have confidence that the government on their front bench actually had people that understand business, and that’s the root of the problem.”
Asked about strikes by doctors, he said: “I think this is grossly irresponsible, and they were given the option by the secretary of state to defer that action into the New Year, when it would be less damaging. As you say, earlier, we’ve got this super flu running, ripping through the population.
“At the moment, a 55% increase in the instance of that this week compared to last week. But the big mistake that was made was that the government set all the wrong expectations when it first came to office, because it just gave in to the resident doctors, gave them 22% without any strings attached by way of additional productivity requirements and so on, in the naive expectation that this problem would then just go away. Well, it hasn’t, but it’s deeply unsatisfactory, yeah.”
He added: “They’re now seeking another 26%, so look…if the economy was in a booming and strong position and was being properly managed by the government, maybe one could afford to pay more, but I’m afraid that where the economy is at the moment, and given the extent of the increases they’ve had in the past, getting on towards 30%, I really don’t think these claims are justified.”
