Economic gloom,

T HERE is always a danger that the media can talk down an economy. These are dangerous times and lifting consumer confidence is vital in the fight against the economic gloom. Reading Britain´s Sunday newspapers you got the impression that the British economy was heading for a triple dip recession. Chancellor George Osborne was widely criticised for his economic policies. But yesterday the official figures were announced which showed that Britain had avoided a “triple dip” and infact the economy grew by 0.3 percent, higher than the 0.1 forecasts by some economists. It was good news for Britain and also for the Chancellor who was given some respite. Now, overall it is only modest growth, but it is growth. In these hard times any economic news should be celebrated. But the Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls can also be accused of talking down the economy. Rather than welcoming the good economic news he said that growth was lacklustre and that the economy was in the same position now as it was six months ago. Come on Ed, you could welcome the news! Afterall, Ed Balls, is partly responsible for Britain´s economic mess and any sign of growth should be welcomed even if it means praising the coalition. Party politics and media speculation is not needed when the economy is in bad shape. Perhaps, now we will not hear the words triple dip recession again, well at least until the next quarter growth figures are announced.