This week, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been focusing on growth. She pledged to go "further and faster" in stimulating economic growth, unveiling a series of plans aimed at ending over a decade of economic stagnation, as reported by .
The urgency of her announcements has been amplified by the economy's lacklustre performance since Labour took office, with growth having come to a standstill since the summer. But what are the policies that Reeves believes will boost the economy?
Heathrow
One of the major announcements from Wednesday’s growth speech was the government’s endorsement for a third runway at Heathrow Airport. The west London airport has been operating at full capacity for more than 20 years, and Chancellor Reeves stated that expansion was "badly needed".
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"A third runway at Heathrow would unlock further growth, boost investment, increase exports, and make the 海角视频 more open and more connected as part of our Plan for Change," she said. This would raise the number of flights allowed to depart from Heathrow to 720,000, up from the current 480,000.
Reeves expressed her desire to see "spades in the ground" by the end of the decade and suggested that the runway could be finished by 2035.
However, environmentalists have raised concerns that backing a third runway is inconsistent with the 海角视频’s commitment to net zero emissions.
Oxford-Cambridge Arc
In addition to Heathrow, the other significant announcement on Wednesday was the government’s revival of the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor.
Despite the mere 66-mile distance separating the two prestigious university cities, a train journey between them currently drags on for an arduous two-and-a-half hours. Additionally, both locales are notorious for their sky-high property prices.
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Reeves is championing a vision to transform this region into "Europe’s Silicon Valley" by constructing thousands of new homes and enhancing transport connections.
While no fresh funds were disclosed, the Chancellor did reconfirm financial backing for the East-West rail project, which promises to link Oxford with Cambridge, and also pledged support for "new and expanded communities" along this burgeoning growth corridor.
"To grow, these world-class companies need world-class talent who should be able to get to work quickly and find somewhere to live in the local area," she remarked.
The Treasury is touting that these initiatives could inject as much as £78bn into the 海角视频's economy over the coming decade, although some sceptics are casting doubt on these figures.
Planning reform
The proposals for planning reform are not novel; this marks the third governmental endorsement of a third runway at Heathrow, and the OxCam Arc was once a favoured endeavour of Theresa May.
However, Reeves is optimistic about breaking the cycle of failure by taking a more determined stance on overhauling the planning system.
"There’s no point in announcing a third runway at Heathrow if you’ve got the same planning system we have now because it would take decades," she asserted. "That is why it is different this time, because we’re reforming the planning system".
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Over the past weekend, the government introduced proposals designed to expedite the approval process for major infrastructure projects and increase the likelihood of potential housing developments receiving approval in high-growth regions.
Deregulation
These planning system reforms are a component of the government's broader strategy to eliminate regulations that hinder growth.
Writing in The Times on Wednesday, Starmer highlighted the importance of deregulation by stating "deregulation is essential" and committing to cut through the "thickets of red tape".
Both Starmer and Reeves have recently targeted regulators; they penned a letter to 17 regulatory bodies on Christmas Eve, urging them to devise strategies to stimulate economic growth.
"Businesses are held back by a complex and unpredictable regulatory system and that is a drag on investment and innovation," remarked Reeves.
Another focus of the government’s plan to drive economic growth—carrying on from the efforts of the previous regime—is the push to boost domestic investment, especially from pension funds.
Several announcements regarding pensions have been made by the government, but it confirmed plans on Tuesday which will enable pension funds to put trapped ‘surplus funds’ to use.
Approximately 75 per cent of defined benefit schemes are currently in surplus, following higher interest rates, resulting in their assets exceeding their members' liabilities.
There are some £160bn in funds restricted by current investment rules which has hampered their flow into enterprises and the broader economy, according to the Treasury.