Opinion from CEO Alan Leaman

The British economy has just crawled out of recession. No doubt the figures for the 4^th quarter in 2009 will be revised, and probably upwards. But a 0.1% increase in GDP is disappointing.

 

The good news, though, is that many, many firms have taken appropriate action to see off the worst impacts of the drop in output during the recession. Our labour market is more flexible, and employees have responded to the bad news with some courageous decisions of their own. The private sector has been tough on its own costs, though it has struggled to remain innovative.

 

One of Britain’s problems coming out of the recession is that too many parts of the country are over-dependent on public sector employment and we still have to see the effects of a withdrawal of stimulus measures such as the car scrappage scheme.  And next year will also see some pretty tough tax increases, which will do nothing for levels of demand and economic confidence.

 

This is a tough inheritance for any Government after the election (almost definitely in May). It also means that management consultancies have to get closer than ever to their private sector clients in order to help them navigate these waters. Hopefully, we will also see new businesses and business models which can do well, even in a period of slow growth. I’ve just visited the launch of a new organisation called Save our Savers. Their message only really works if there a good prospect of being able to invest in an economy which can generate positive returns.