George Osborne May Struggle To Make UK's Growth More Than 'Flash In A Pan'

Why The UK's Economic Growth May Be Just A 'Flash In The Pan'
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George Osborne, U.K. chancellor of the exchequer, sits and listens during the Commonwealth Games Business Conference in Glasgow, U.K., on Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Scotland holds a referendum on Sept. 18, with the main political parties in London united in their opposition to the nationalists led by Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond. Photographer: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Bloomberg via Getty Images

George Osborne has been urged to improve levels of exports and business investment in the British economy in order to stop a recent surge of growth amounting to just a "flash in the pan".

However, this comes as analysis published by Labour suggests that the Chancellor is on track to fail to hit his target to increase the rate of exports in Britain to £1 trillion by 2020.

John Longworth, director general of the British Chambers Of Commerce, said: "We are leading, rather than following, other major economies when it comes to short-term growth.

"The task at hand is to ensure that the stellar 2014 growth is not a flash in the pan. We need to invest and export more, innovate, and build.

"It is disappointing that we have downgraded export growth for the next two years as a strong international trade performance is key if we are to steer away from a reliance on consumer spending."

The BCC upgraded its growth forecast from 3.1 to 3.2% this year and from 2.7% to 2.8% in 2015, however it more than halved its prediction for export growth in goods and services to 0.8% this year.

This comes after shadow treasury minister Shabana Mahmood accused the government of falling "way below" its 2012 goal of doubling exports by the end of the decade.

She said new analysis, based on House of Commons Library figures, also revealed the average growth in exports since 2010 had been 4.2%, less than half the rate needed. That would mean the Government would be £330 billion below its aim by 2020, she added.

George Osborne's Exporting Awkward Moments
£1.5 billion on a scheme that has helped no-one yet...(01 of10)
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A £1.5bn direct lending scheme launched in 2013, aiming to offer loans of between £5 million and £50 million to overseas buyers looking to buy from British exporters, has received only 15 inquiries, with just one firm applying for support.
A £5 billion exports scheme did nothing for 2 years...(02 of10)
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A £5bn export refinancing scheme, launched in July 2012 and intended to be running by the end of that year, has only now been launched this April.
Another scheme helped just five businesses (03 of10)
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The government ditched its "Export Enterprise Finance Guarantee" scheme after it helped only five firms.
The UK hasn't improved much over the last year(04 of10)
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According to the Office for National Statistics, the UK's balance of trade is just as negative as where it was over a year ago - with the UK importing £2.5bn more than it exports overall.
Wasn't George's aim to get Britain exporting? (05 of10)
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The Tory party manifesto of 2010 stated that "a sustainable recovery must be driven by growth in exports." Meanwhile, George Osborne promised in June 2010 to "raise from the ruins of an economy built on debt a new, balanced economy where we save, invest and export." He went on to promise in 2012 to double British exports to £1 trillion by the end of the decade, a target that MPs recently warned he was going to miss.
The UK looks to be losing the global race(06 of10)
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Despite coalition rhetoric that the UK is in a "global race" against other countries, the OBR warned that they expect the UK's share of the export market to keep shrinking as it loses out to competitors over the next few years.
Will Osborne's export efforts mean much? (07 of10)
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The OBR also estimated that the amount exported by Britain will be so dwarfed by how much it imports that it will slightly drag down growth this year and then make "little" contribution to growth over the next few years.
The IMF says UK exports are too weak(08 of10)
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Christine Lagarde, head of the International Monetary Fund, said last week that UK exports remain "subdued", adding: "The export cylinder is one that could fire a little more strongly."
We're having to rely more on foreign investment(09 of10)
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The UK’s current account, which summarises the transactions between Britain and the rest of the world, has been getting worse, leading the ONS to conclude that the country was "becoming increasingly dependent on inflows of foreign capital". (credit:ONS )
George knows he has his work cut out...(10 of10)
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"The job is never done," the Chancellor admitted in April as he unveiled his latest raft of reforms to get British business trading.

In an article for PoliticsHome, the Birmingham Ladywood MP went on: "While David Cameron and George Osborne complacently claim the economy is now fixed, the truth is most people are worse off under the Tories.

"The Business Secretary let the cat out of the bag with his comments this week worrying about the lack of re-balancing in the economy and when he admitted earlier this summer - even before we had confirmation two weeks ago that pay growth has hit a record low - that wages have been growing more slowly than prices.

"Whilst Vince Cable and the Lib Dems are part of a Government that's failing to tackle this cost of living crisis, the Business Secretary is right - living standards have been falling, are still under pressure and there are real concerns about housing and exports.

"The Government said they'd rebalance the economy, but house-building is at its lowest level since the 1920s, net lending to business is down, business investment is lagging behind our competitors.

"Solving the cost of living crisis will be tough. The hard truth is that there is no quick fix - we have to earn our way to rising living standards for all.

"But we won't succeed through a race to the bottom on wages and skills where people see their job security eroded and living standards decline. This is the mistake I believe that George Osborne is making."