No room for the Tories’ complacency while the economy is still recovering

The East of England’s Deputy Regional Minister, Bob Blizzard MP has today welcomed the news that the UK is officially out of recession, but has warned against withdrawing government support while the economy is still recovering.

The figures, published by the independent Office of National Statistics this morning, show that the UK economy has begun growing again, with GDP growth estimated at 0.1% for the last quarter of 2009.

At the same time, a report by experts at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned against withdrawing government support from the economy too soon.

The news comes a week after Labour in the East of England released figures that showed how much higher unemployment was under the Tories. Today's news is a strong reminder not to risk the complacency that the Tories would bring to handling the economy.

Labour’s Deputy Minister for the East of England and MP for Waveney, Bob Blizzard said:

"This is good news for the East of England and for Britain, but also a reminder that there is no room for complacency. The Labour Government will continue to do everything we can to protect communities across the East and keep the economy growing.

"Today’s news underlines how dangerous it would be to throw caution to the wind, as the Tories propose, and make deep cuts now."

"During this difficult period, Labour is taking action to help people in the East of England back into work and to support local businesses. We introduced the ‘Time to Pay’ scheme, which allows struggling companies to postpone tax payments and helps keep businesses afloat. We will continue to help local people who have lost their jobs to stay in their homes through our mortgage support schemes.

"While these figures suggest Labour’s economic policy is working, we will continue to take action to strengthen growth and promote jobs. As the IMF said today, while the economy is still recovering, it is crucial that the Labour Government maintains support for the local economy here in the East of England and nationally.