George Osborne admits UK economic recovery is taking longer than hoped

Sunday, 2 December 2012

*Chancellor George Osborne has conceded that the UK's economic recovery is taking longer than he had hoped, while also promising a squeeze on the richest people's taxes and pensions.
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Chancellor George Osborne tells Andrew Marr that Britain's economic recovery is taking longer than hoped (Picture: BBC)

Mr Osborne's words come amid warnings that the government would miss its key economic targets.

The chancellor also warned the rich would pay more when he unveils his autumn statement on Wednesday.

Whether the government has hit its economic targets is set to be revealed by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility on Wednesday.

Mr Osborne said it is 'clearly taking longer to deal with Britain's debts', but claimed the country has made 'real progress'.

'I'm very clear going forward we have got to deal with this deficit,' he said.

'It is going to take longer, that means more difficult decisions and it's got to be done fairly.

'That means yes, the richest have to bear their fair share and they will. That does mean more than they are paying at the moment.

'There's not going to be a mansion tax, we have made that clear.'

He said the government was also going to tackle welfare bills.

Meanwhile, more funds will be provided for the UK authorities to tackle tax avoidance by multinationals, Mr Osborne has announced.

That comes following controversy after it emerged big firms including Starbucks, Google and Amazon pay little or no corporation tax in the UK.

Starbucks said today that it is reviewing its tax affairs following the public outcry in the UK.

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