The UK predicted to be only major economy to shrink in 2023, as it plunges to lowest ever position on Corruption Perception Index.
Illustration by Ben Jennings, The Guardian
It’s a rough day to be the UK, as the International Money Fund today reviewed it’s previous predictions that expected the UK economy to grow slightly in 2023. Instead they are now forecasting that it will contract by an estimated 0.6%, the only major economy expected to do so, including sanctions hit Russia.
The announcement comes on the 3rd anniversary of the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union, something that it is generally agreed upon by economists has left the UK economy 5.5% smaller than it would have been if Brexit had never happened, with some saying it has even cracked the economic foundations of the country.
In a country that is facing ongoing strikes in disputes over pay and working conditions across all major sectors, including the Fire Service voting to strike for the first time in 20 years, the news that we can expect less money in our economy will be especially unwelcome.
Tensions across the country have been amplified in recent weeks as former Chancellor and Conservative Party Chairman Nadhim Zahawi was embroiled in a tax scandal when it was reported he had avoided paying millions of pounds in tax, and had been hit with a hefty penalty. Many expressed anger that the chairman of the party who keep saying there simply isn’t enough money to pay people in line with inflation, had avoided paying such a large amount of tax. Mounting pressure from public, press, and opposition eventually led to his removal has chairman of the party.
It’s the latest in a long line of scandals to rock the Conservative Party in the last few years, and it seems the rest of the world is taking note, as it was also announced today that the UK has fallen 7 places in Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index. It’s ranking in position 18 on the list is it’s lowest ever position, and only four other countries saw their year on year rank fall by 5 or more points. They were Qatar, Myanmar, Azerbaijan, and Oman.
Chief Executive of Transparency International UK, Daniel Bruce said:
This sharp fall in the UK’s score is a powerful indictment of a recent decline in standards in government and controls over the use of taxpayer money. These findings should set alarm bells ringing in Downing Street. The underlying data clearly indicate that business executives and other experts are concerned about insufficient controls on the abuse of public office and increasingly view corruption and bribery as a real issue in Britain. This is the strongest signal yet that slipping standards are being noticed on the world stage.
No.10 has insisted that the UK economy is strong, despite what the IMF have predicted, however they are yet to comment on CPI ranking’s drop.