King’s speech: Governor’s “bigger picture” isn’t big enough
Following yesterday’s growth figures, James Plunkett argues that just ‘waiting it out’ is unlikely to deliver a cure to the sluggishness of the British economy.
James Plunkett
Website James is a Research and Policy Analyst at the Resolution Foundation; he writes about economic policy and the impact on living standards and the "squeezed middle".
The real threat to living standards for those on low to middle incomes
Ed Miliband’s attempt on Friday’s Today programme to define the ‘squeezed middle’ has made some people question the point of the term. Shadow chief secretary Liam Byrne tried again on Sunday to pin down the concept. But the big question remains: is the ‘squeezed middle’ just a political slogan – as meaningless as ‘the deserving majority’ – or does it refer to something real, and a big, new challenge for political leaders?