UK emerges from six year depression

The Office for National (ONS) is expected to announce later today (July 25th) that the longest economic downturn in British history has finally come to an end, six years after the greatest financial crisis since the Wall Street Crash of 1929.

Over the last year in particular, the UK's economy has picked up growth markedly, so much so that various organisations like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have had to revise their initial modest estimates of recovery.

It is anticipated that the ONS will report that that UK GDP expanded by 0.8 to 0.9 per cent during the second quarter of 2014, meaning that it has finally surpassed the size that it was in 2008, before the credit crunch unravelled.

Only yesterday, the IMF published further alterations of its projections, and confirmed that Britain will indeed be the fastest among other major economies.

It envisages that by the end of the year, the UK's economy will have grown by a substantial 3.2 per cent.

"Today the IMF has upgraded their 2014 forecast for the UK by more than any other major economy," chancellor George Osborne commented.

"The government's long-term economic plan is working. But the job is not yet done and so we will go on making the assessment of what needs to be done to secure a brighter economic future."

Critics still argue that while economic recovery is welcome, ordinary people have yet to experience the benefits of it.

Writing in the Guardian yesterday, shadow chancellor Ed Ball said that it was great that the UK's economy had returned to its pre-financial crisis size but there is still al long way to go.

For example, Britain is still a full three years away from getting back to 220 levels in terms of GDP per head.

"To build a stronger and more balanced economy we need to get at least 200,000 new homes built a year, and devolve more power and funding to city and county regions," he advised.

"British businesses should be backed by cutting business rates, maintaining the most competitive corporation tax in the G7, and arguing for Britain to stay in a reformed EU."

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