There has been much excitement at Sajid Javid’s apparent conversion to Keynesianism. Appearing on The Andrew Marr Show on Sunday, the Communities Secretary hymned the virtues of borrowing to invest.
“Taking advantage of record low interest rates can be the right thing if done sensibly,” he said (though Brexit is pushing borrowing costs up). Sources subsequently said that Javid wanted £50bn to fund a new housing programme in next month’s Budget. (Labour, whose fiscal rules allow for borrowing for investment, have called for £250bn for infrastructure over the next decade).
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