London is outperforming other parts of the UK in economic and jobs growth, according to new research published by TUC. Economic recovery is currently weakest in the North West and Northern Ireland.
The research analyses the latest figures to look at regional and national contributions to the UK’s economic and jobs growth since 2010.
Between 2010 and 2013, the London economy grew more than one and a half times as fast (163%) as the rate of the UK economy as a whole. In comparison, growth was only around half the national rate in Northern Ireland (49%) and the North West (51%).
Between 2010 and 2014, jobs growth in London (11.5%) was twice as fast than the UK as a whole (5.1%), three times as fast as the West Midlands (3.7%) and South West (3.6%), four times as fast as the North East (2.9%) and Wales (2.7%), and six times as fast as the North West (1.8%).
In 2013 London accounted for 22 percent of the UK’s economic activity, up from 21 percent in 2010 and 19 percent in 1997. In 2014, London accounted for 14.2 percent of all UK jobs, compared to 13.5 percent in 2010 and 12.4 percent in 1997.
TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady says:
“We need a recovery that works for the whole of the UK, but cuts to infrastructure and services have hit places that are most in need of investment. We now have an unbalanced recovery that is too weak outside of London, too dependent on families getting into debt, and too focused on jobs in low-paid service industries.
“UK regions won’t become powerhouses of growth and job creation unless they are powered-up by investment in skills, infrastructure and decent public services – but the Chancellor’s extreme cuts will mean pulling the plug.
“We need a better economic plan that prioritises balanced growth across the UK by targeting investment to communities that are most in need of modern infrastructure and more decent jobs.”
Amie Filcher is an editorial assistant at HRreview.
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