Grim Brown warns of a bleak year for Britain

Gordon Brown today issues a bleak assessment of the world economy as he braces Britain for a year of belt tightening in the wake of the credit crunch.

In a strong warning, which sets the backdrop for a campaign to revive his premiership, Brown tells Britain to prepare for ‘global financial turbulence’ in 2008. ‘Our strong economy is the foundation,’ Brown writes in his new year message. ‘With unbending determination in 2008, we will steer a course of stability through global financial turbulence. The global credit problem that started in America is now the most immediate challenge for every economy.’



…Brown’s decision to highlight the threat to the economy shows he still believes his track record places him in a strong position to cope with financial instability, despite recent polls that show the Tories closing the gap when judged on economic competence. But Brown also wants to brace people for a bumpy year. He says that ‘2008 will be the decisive year of this decade to put in place the long-term changes that will prepare us for the decades ahead’.

Brown indicates that ministers will soon embrace a new generation of nuclear power stations. The government believes that renewing Britain’s civil nuclear power programme is the most effective way of guaranteeing security of supply while tackling climate change. ‘Because a good environment is good economics, we will take the difficult decisions on energy security – on nuclear power and renewables – so British invention and innovation can claim new markets for new technologies and create hundreds of thousands of new jobs.’

Observer (UK)