Lucy Hooker
Business Reporter, BBC News
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Chancellor Rachel Reeves supported the construction of a third track in Heathrow, and a whole series of other plans – in order to grow the British economy.
In the words of the chancellor, growth is not “only lines on a graph” but also “books in the pockets of people”.
So, will it make us all feel better? And how long?
What does Rachel Reeves say?
Not for the first time, the Chancellor stressed how significant growth is and that this government is making its priority growth.
More economic growth should mean more jobs, higher wages and more taxes flowing to finance public spending for public services, such as education, police and health care.
“Without economic growth, we cannot improve the lives of ordinary workers,” said Reeves.
She described the plans to extend airports and create a scientific hub around Oxford and Cambridge, building tanks and improving the rail lines.
And she explained how she wants to make the United Kingdom a better – and easier – to do business.
Will improving growth affect me?
There is always a fierce debate on what will do or will not grow the economy.
The growth measures any increase in the size of the economy, which means all the things we buy and sell, whether it is a haircut or a house.
Each government says it wants to increase growth and propose its own plan. But if it works depends on a wide range of factors, especially what is happening in other countries. And currently, growth in the United Kingdom is in plates.
The Reeves plan is to make things happen by supporting major construction and transport projects, which facilitates planning approval and to encourage more money from companies rather than money government.
The advantages of growth are never felt uniformly, so even if it is a great success, some will benefit more than others.
For some people, this could mean a new job, or higher wages, especially if you work in a sector that sees the direct advantage of a new investment, for example, construction or AI.
Even if you don’t, there could be a “domino” effect in Knock-on like the first people to benefit from going out and spending more in pubs, stores and elsewhere, increase income for other companies .
But most of us will only have the impression that the economy increases when we see dominant cranes above a new project or new stores opening onto the main street.
And although Reeves said it wanted to improve the standard of living across the United Kingdom, most of the specific projects it announced were in southern England.
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When will I feel the benefit?
We could tell us that the economy increases. We could even see the current building. But that could take some time to feel a direct advantage – more books in our pockets.
This is because many projects have described that Reeves will take years to deliver.
It is unlikely that the construction of the new track in Heathrow begins before 2035.
So, if you are not a planner, a lawyer or a manufacturer, it means to wait a little time to overturn you.
Even Reeves admitted that things “cannot be returned overnight”.
But the chancellor puts on something that could have an effect a little earlier.
It was criticized to be too dark about the UK’s prospects. Now it focuses on “the opportunity” and “potential”.
If it can make people more optimistic about the economic fortunes of the United Kingdom, there could be a much faster boost to our mood. People can spend more and employers can choose to spend part of this money in salary increases.