LEAP Budget report launched

PRESS NOTICE:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:


A Windfall Tax on Recession profiteers: banks, supermarket and energy companies
. . . LEAP launches 2011 Budget Report

A report by left economics think-tank LEAP has today dismissed the argument of Chancellor George Osborne that public sector spending has been a contributory cause of the UK’s economic problems. The report shows that actually instability as been driven by an increasing reliance on the private sector and is now being exacerbated by “a laissez-faire labour market policy”.

The report, published today, advocates a Windfall Tax on the excessive profiteering of the UK banks, energy companies and supermarkets to fund job creation and capital expenditure programmes to tackle unemployment and

John McDonnell MP, LEAP Chair, said:

“As they see their services cut and as they lose their jobs more and more people are beginning to understand the implications of the Government’s economic policy and are looking for an alternative.

“Funded by a windfall tax on recession profiteering we can put people back to work on greening and growing our manufacturing base to rebalance our economy. Demand is increased and by increasing demand we get onto a virtuous economic cycle

“The alternative is straightforward enough. We now need to bring this Government down so that we can implement it.”

Andrew Fisher, LEAP co-ordinator, said:

“Hacking away at spending – as Osborne is doing on an unprecedented scale – is reminiscent of the amputation of infected parts of the body by medieval quacks, who are then bemused when the patient dies. In fact Osborne is worse: he has misdiagnosed the illness too.

“The real problem for the UK economy is not public spending, but high and rising unemployment. We need to restore the public and create jobs to grow and rebalance the economy.”

-Ends-

Download the report