FINANCIAL TIMES: The UK’s double-dip recession has deepened sharply and unexpectedly, leaving the economy smaller than it was when the coalition government took office two years ago.
George Osborne, the chancellor, said the country had “deep-rooted economic problems” after official data estimated that output fell 0.7 per cent between the first and second quarters – much more than the 0.2 per cent fall forecast by economists. “We’re dealing with our debts at home and the debt crisis abroad,” he said.
However, critics of Mr Osborne’s austerity programme, which aims to eliminate the structural current deficit in five years, said the data showed his efforts were self-defeating… (more)
EDITOR: You don’t exit a recession by putting people out of work. You climb out by gettomg people back to work. That isn’t done by austerity; it is accomplished through fiscal stimulus.
