Minister's 'green shoots' gaffe
- 00:01:48
- ITN
Minister's 'green shoots' gaffe
A global response to the economic downturn will dominate talks between Gordon Brown and his German counterpart. The Prime Minister, who last night met with French President Nicolas Sarkozy over dinner in Paris, is meeting Angela Merkel to lay the ground for agreement at a meeting of the G20 in London in April. He departed for a brief European tour as his Government unveiled a multi-billion package aimed at unblocking lending to smaller firms on one of the worst days for UK jobs in years. But the measure was overshadowed by junior minister Baroness Vadera's claim to have seen some "green shoots" of economic recovery, which sparked opposition claims Labour was out of touch with the reality of the recession. The Business Minister later said she was sorry if her comments had been misinterpreted and insisted there was no complacency on the part of the Government. The Prime Minister has conceded that, without co-ordinated action across the globe, the recession could last two years and is keen to secure a deal at the G20 gathering which he will chair. The biggest job losses on Tuesday were at banking giant Barclays, which said it planned to cut 2,100 jobs at its retail and commercial banking business. Car maker Jaguar Land Rover said it would axe 450 jobs, including 300 managers, as part of a cost-cutting exercise, and catalogue giant Grattan raised fears of up to 3,800 cuts. The Government's measures to help small and medium-sized companies included loan guarantees and a new enterprise fund to help companies struggling to access finance, as well as a £10 billion working capital scheme, securing up to £20 billion of short-term bank lending to companies with a turnover of up to £500 million.
ITN | January 15, 2009
