Lord Digby Jones has told how he feels better leadership may have helped the delivery of the Autumn Statement.
Speaking on GB News today (SUN) the former CBI Director General said: “It’s about leadership, isn’t it? It’s about the fact that you’ve got to say to people, this is where this is, it’s over there and I’m going to take you there. You cannot have had all this money spent on you, without there being a price. Get a realistic understanding but make clear we’re on your side. The Government needs to say we’re with you, and this is how we are taking you there.”
In an interview with Alastair Stewart, Mr Jones continued: “I defy any member of the Labour Party to give an alternative way of doing this. When they use words on a whim “grow the economy”, well, that’s lovely to say but you try and do it in the middle of this worldwide recession.”
He added: “I was surprised the next morning when the Statement – by and large – got panned by the media because I actually thought it was very good. But I don’t for the life of me understand why, they don’t bring in means testing for pensions. There will be an awful lot of people who are going to get a 10% pay rise in their retirement pension, who frankly, of course, would like it, but do they need it? I’m not saying it shouldn’t have happened, but I’m surprised given that desperate times call for desperate measures they didn’t bring in a degree of means testing.”
Mr Jones’ comments come after Tony Danker from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said Jeremy Hunt had no plans for growth.
Mr Danker said that without higher growth, the UK would not afford the growing cost of health and social care.
Speaking earlier on Sunday Mr Danker said Mr Hunt’s statement had been “all about fighting inflation and getting the government budget in some decent shape and that does need to be done”.
But he added that “there was really nothing there that tells us the economy is going to avoid another decade of low productivity and low growth”.
“Jeremy Hunt did some things which will be very welcome, but he also made businesses, and everybody pay more taxes and so the fear is there just enough there to turn round and say, ‘we can grow again’,” he said.
“So, I don’t think he did enough, I think he is going to have to come back with more.”
Mr Hunt’s Autumn Statement was in large part designed to reassure financial markets after the controversy sparked by his predecessor’s mini budget in September.
