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Richmond upon Thames Liberal Democrats:Covering the constituencies of Twickenham and Richmond Park |
NIck Clegg at the LSE
September 16, 2011 6:40 PM
• [Sep 14] Nick Clegg: "GOOD morning. Today I'm going to talk about the economy. I'm certainly in the right place. For more than a century LSE scholars have been at the forefront of every major economic debate asking - and answering - the most pressing questions of the day.
Today, the big question facing governments is this: Given the unprecedented pressures in the global economy, what can we do to restore stability and encourage growth? The Coalition will be saying more about that between now and our Autumn Statement, but I wanted to make this speech today because the international situation has changed dramatically. It is worse, even, to just six months ago. To quote Christine Lagarde, the new head of the IMF: 'We are in a dangerous new phase'. A huge rise in oil and food prices. A slowdown in overseas markets. Continued turmoil in the Eurozone. Ongoing uncertainty in the US. Far from a one off shock, the 2008 banking crisis has set off a chain reaction that continues to reverberate around the globe . .
Good work is already happening. For example, by Philip Hammond and his Transport team, responsible for a huge chunk of Government infrastructure investment. To make sure it happens across the board, Danny Alexander, the Chief Secretary, will be tasked with shaking the Whitehall tree so no-one is stockpiling capital that can be put to good use today. Danny has, this week, left Cabinet Ministers and top civil servants in no doubt of their responsibilities. Secretaries of State will have to report back to him on their progress throughout the Autumn - and no one likes falling out with the Treasury.
Since we came into government Ministers have been expected to make savings. Now they're under the same pressure to spend the money they've got and, on top of all that, we'll also soon be announcing our plans to boost to housebuilding -still its lowest since the 1920s.
So, to finish as I began, Government is not helpless. The Coalition is not reluctant. Despite the darkening global picture, despite the need to stay on top of the deficit, we'll do whatever it takes to return our economy to health. Whether driving cooperation abroad or pulling the right levers at home, as I said, a gear change for growth.
Thank you."
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