CBI outlines ‘Wish List’ of business priorities for Government’s 2016 Autumn Statement
The Chancellor should lay foundations allowing firms to navigate a more uncertain economic outlook, invest for the future and make sure that all regions are “firing on all cylinders”. ‘Rarely has there been a more important Autumn Statement’ is the view of the CBI in its submission for 2016.
While the economy has shown resilience in the months since the vote to leave the EU, economic uncertainty continues over the UK’s future relationship with the EU and its impact on firms’ investment plans. In the short term, the Government needs to stimulate confidence and investment, while over the longer-term, it must balance productivity growth across all regions with an ambitious plan for infrastructure investment.
The CBI is proposing:
*An increase in average Public Sector Net Investment spending this Parliament to 2% of GDP (it’s currently forecast to fall to 1.7%). This would increase average annual public investment by £6 billion. Part of this should go to essential local transport infrastructure including through the Local Growth Fund, which was five times oversubscribed in the latest funding round. This investment will drive productivity by increasing the scale of regional labour markets