by Atul Hatwal
New figures uncovered by Labour Uncut reveal that investment in the UK by foreign companies has plummeted by a third. The latest results, released at the start of February, are for 2010 and show a massive fall of £16.2bn from the £49bn invested in 2009 to £32.8bn in 2010.
In an ominous sign for David Cameron’s isolationist European policy, the biggest fall over the year was in investment from Europe which fell by 94% from £32.1bn in 2009 to £1.8bn in 2010 – the lowest level since records began in 1988.
Despite the British prime minister’s initial close relationship with French president Nicolas Sarkozy, France led the way in withdrawing funds from the UK. They cut their investment in Britain by a net £23.7bn in 2010, a record for a European country.
If the government were to raise the extra funds to plug this inward investment gap, it would require an increase in the basic rate of income tax of more than 4p in the pound or a further hike in VAT of 3%.
When David Cameron took office one of his priorities was to develop Britain’s links with fast growing Asian economies such as India and China. The goal was to increase trade and inward investment into the UK from countries that were comparatively unaffected by the global downturn.
But the 2010 figures for inward investment have thrown this strategy into doubt.
Despite the prime minister leading the largest ever UK trade delegation to India just weeks after coming into office, net investment into the UK from India was just £50m. Yet even this was positively lavish compared to the paltry £1m China invested in the UK.
In comparison, British companies poured £1.8bn into India and £930m into China.
The government sneaked out the disastrous inward investment figures in an obscure statistics publication called “Business Monitor MA4” released through the Office of National Statistics (ONS) last week.
The department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has been silent even though boosting inward investment is a key target in their departmental business plan.
Strangely though, in the week these figures were issued by the ONS, BIS did somehow find the time to put out press releases on niche topics such as speeding up the patent process for British firms in Canada.
As unemployment continues to rise and the economy flat-lines, the collapse in inward investment presided over by the Tory-led government within months of coming to power would seem to provide some explanation for Britain’s current dire economic straits.
Tags: Atul Hatwal, economy, Europe, inward investment
It has a lot to do with people like you attacking businesses.
People listen when you attack all bankers for the sins of the few.
If you change statements like that and swap banker for black or Jew, it reveals your way of thinking.
ie. Some blacks commit crimes so all blacks are criminals. Unacceptable, probably illegal, and yet you and other politicians will make the same noises about other groups.
It does reveal that at heart you and other politicians are unpleasant people.
The use of parliament to attack individuals is also rife. For example changing the law to get one person, Brian Haw is now extended all over the place. Fred the Pleb being a good example. Quite right he should be stripped of his knighthood. However, when it comes to other crooks such as Hanningfield Uddin or Taylor, Truscott, Archer, they are still operating in the Lords. Even worse secrecy certificates are being signed left right and centre to cover up what the Lords knew and did in their cases.
It loooks very much like Europe has given up on GB. Euopeans must be fed up to the back teeth with Camerons prevarications and ditherings saying one thing and meaning another a habit gleaned from Clegg, that investment has voted with its feet. Confidence has virtually fallen to its asilnadir. Its a shambles. Thats why Dave is in Paris giving his conservative chum a boost, and no doubt he will do the same in Berlin for Merkel, saying conservatives must stick together or face the deluge of socialism that will sweep across Europe starting with the ordinary French socialist bloke standing for President. With Berlosconni gone and Boris and Sarkonext on the cards, times are looking togh for the forces of reaction in Europe.
Not suprising. The FT reported over a year ago that the cut in corporation tax was failing to attract FDI and the FDI barometer showed executives were moe concerned about immogration policy than tax policy.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9db3fb5e-2336-11e0-b6a3-00144feab49a.html#axzz1me9eTG1U
What we need is another peer in the mould of Lord Stansgate/Anthony Wedgewood Benn determined to step down from the Lords this time as a Life Peer, whatever it takes. Its not that easy to disown a Life Peerage; and waiting Parliament to Reform the 2nd Chamber is like waiting for Xmas.
We need someone with gusto like Prezza o take up that cause. Prezza shouldn’t be in the Lords anyway, he said so often enough.
So Prezza step forward, do the decent thing and bring about that change in the Law on Life Peers, and stop wasting our time on attacking NewsInt, because its getting you nowhere. And forget about standing as Police Commisioner for London. Labour want to win that one.