As the IMF calls for Plan B, everyone has got very excited that Nick Clegg has come out and said he thinks cutting spending on infrastructure went too fast at the start – and maybe needs addressing. “It’s another coalition split” goes up the cry…
But it’s not you know. The change in strategy had already been announced. It’s just everyone missed it.
As I said a few weeks ago, the mid-term review marked a shift in the coalition’s priorities. A seismic shift.
The original coalition agreement made one thing very clear. Every pledge, every promise, every plan promised in the manifestos and the agreement itself, would be secondary to one basic principle – that being that
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“The deficit reduction programme takes precedence over any of the measures in this agreement”
and I suspect most commentators think that is still the stated priority of the government. Quite a lot of Members of Parliament probably think that too
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But it isn’t, you know.
It changed on 7 January. Now, the new coalition agreement or mid-term review says…
“Dealing with the deficit may have been our first task, but our most important task is to build a stronger, more balanced economy”
Which is quite a different thing.
It sounds like the goal now is investment. It’s growth. It’s a boost to the supply side of the economy.
Nick was just re-stating what’s already been announced.
Plan B.