Labour's Shadow Business Secretary has welcomed news that inflation has fallen to 3.4 per cent but claimed that the UK economy as whole is underperforming.
Jonathan Reynolds told GB News: “Of course, we warmly welcome any fall in inflation, both what it means for households and for the government finances. That is extremely welcome news.
“For a lot of people who are watching this morning, tuning into the news, they'll welcome it as I have done, but they'll still point out the times are hard, that food prices are still high, that the tax burden is high.
“The economy hasn't performed as people would want and I think we've all got to acknowledge that, but in terms of the piece of information we've got this morning, everyone should welcome falling inflation.”
In a discussion during Breakfast with Eamonn Holmes and Isabel Webster, he continued: “Where I would direct my criticism, it would be towards the Government because...if you look at some of the reasons that we've been so uniquely exposed to high inflation, it’s by exposure to high fossil fuel prices, the Government doubling down on that rather than finding alternatives, and a lot of people not back in the labour market after the pandemic because they’re waiting for NHS treatment.
“That's the responsibility of the Government. I think even looking at the way the agreement with the European Union was done where we've got a lot of friction still in terms of food prices, and how food and agricultural products are transported between here and the European Union. Those are things that the Government should have looked at and been a much greater priority.”
He added: “But look, what we all want to see ultimately, is that interest rates coming down because if you've got to redo your mortgage, or you're looking at the Government's borrowing costs, that is clearly what will have the biggest effect on that.”
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