The media is constantly telling us that ‘the green shoots of recovery’ are being seen in the economy and that we’re finally coming out of recession. Tell that to the millions of unemployed and the thousands more set to join them in the New Year. With Britain one of the last industrialised economies to still be in recession, this Christmas period is not going to be full of good cheer for many. This Christmas period is set to be one of the worst on record, as people tighten belts due to the prospects of pay freezes, price rises, increases in tax and the increase in VAT, which may be raised as high as 20%. With all this and the prospects of more lay off’s in the New Year (those on Christmas Casual contracts and those in precarious jobs), is it any wonder that presents are not the first thing you spend your money on; much more pertinent is the food for tonight and the electricity bill.
This gloomy economic forecast is added weight when we see that the administrators for First Quench Retailing – which owns shops such as Wine Rack and Threshers – are set to cut thousands of jobs across the country and 89 here in Reading before Christmas. More are set to be axed early in the New Year if no buyer can be found.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7828549.stm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/dec/08/darling-recession-pre-budget-report
