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Budget countdown: NECC calls for transparency

A LEADING business organisation has warned the Chancellor that the emergency Budget Statement must allow the private sector to deliver economic recovery in the North East.

The North East Chamber of Commerce (NECC) has urged the Chancellor to use the Budget to deliver clarity on Government plans to tackle the public finance deficit – and to show how these plans will protect the economic security of the region.

In a letter to George Osborne, NECC acknowledged that painful cuts to the public sector are part of the necessary process of addressing the deficit, but warned that the private sector must not suffer as a result. NECC highlighted the fragility of the recovery to date and the importance of adopting policies that would embed it more securely.

James Ramsbotham, chief executive of NECC said: “We know that cuts are coming. Indeed, we have seen the first of these cuts already in the round of projects and services cancelled or postponed last week.

“With the inevitable shrinking of the public sector, it is clear that the private sector must lead the way to a sustained economic recovery. In order to ensure that businesses can succeed in this task, George Osborne’s first Budget needs to ease burdens on the private sector.”

NECC, which represents more than 4,000 businesses who in turn employ about 30 per cent of the region’s workforce, emphasised that radical action was required to stabilise public finances.

The organisation also stressed that any options for deficit reduction should be assessed on their impact on businesses’ ability to deliver the recovery in all regions of the UK.

A combination of tax rises and spending cuts is required, but the impact on business must be minimised and the implications for different regions must be understood.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .