UK growth 'in the doldrums', warns think tank

09 Nov 2023

Think tank the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) has warned that UK growth will 'remain sluggish' in 2024 as monetary policy tightening 'continues to bite'.

The NIESR anticipates GDP growth of 0.6% in 2023 and 0.5% in 2024, and does not expect any cuts in interest rates until late next year.

According to the think tank, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt should ignore calls for pre-election tax cuts in the upcoming Autumn Statement and concentrate on measures to help boost economic growth.

It believes that improvements to housing, infrastructure, transport and digital networks will help to improve UK growth forecasts.

Commenting on the matter, Stephen Millard, Deputy Director for Macroeconomic Modelling and Forecasting at the NIESR, said: 'Although the good news is that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has done enough to bring inflation down to target, the bad news is that the UK's sluggish growth performance continues.

'It is up to the government to increase public investment and encourage private investment so that UK productivity growth may return and standards of living improve.'