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I'm never complacent, says Brown in 'green shoots' row
Paul Waugh, Deputy Political Editor15.01.09
GORDON BROWN stressed today that he was "never complacent" about the economy as the row over business minister Shriti Vadera rumbled on.
Baroness Vadera - one of the Prime Minister's closest economic advisers - was criticised after claiming yesterday that she saw "green shoots" of recovery from the downturn.
At a news conference today in Berlin, where he was holding talks with German chancellor Angela Merkel on the economic situation, Mr Brown said: "As far as comments that ministers have made, we are vigilant in every respect about the economy, never complacent.
"We have further announcements to make that show that in every area where there are problems that people feel in their everyday lives, where real help is needed for businesses and families, we will not stand by on the other side."
Business Secretary Lord Mandelson defended Baroness Vadera today, saying she was "the least complacent" member of his team and worked "night and day to help the British economy" through the recession.
However, Lord Mandelson conceded that Lady Vadera had failed to grasp the political implications of her remarks, which echoed those of former Tory chancellor Norman Lamont. John Major's chancellor was lambasted by Labour when he claimed in October 1991 that there were "green shoots of economic spring" even though the UK was suffering from high unemployment.
Lord Lamont said today that in retrospect his remarks had been "pretty accurate" because Britain pulled out of recession in the summer of 1992.
"When I said it we had been one year in recession. She [Lady Vadera] is claiming the recession is over before it has formally been announced," he said.
Baroness Vadera sparked the row yesterday when she told ITV News: "I am seeing a few green shoots but it's a little bit too early to say exactly how they'd grow."
She was later forced to "clarify" her remarks, insisting that she was not living in a "parallel universe" as thousands more jobs were axed or threatened.
Lord Mandelson made clear on BBC's Newsnight that Baroness Vadera had been referring to the fact that a major British company had managed to raise substantial sums from the corporate bond markets that it had failed to raise even a couple of months ago. "Do those make green shoots? I suspect not," he said.
Pressed on whether Baroness Vadera will use such language again, he replied: "I doubt it."
Lord Mandelson hinted that the minister's political naivety was to blame. "It's the trap you should never walk into if you are being interviewed. I have got a longer political memory perhaps than Shriti," he said.
Shadow business secretary Alan Duncan said: "Shriti Vadera's comments go to show how out of touch and insensitive Gordon Brown's ministers are.
"The person who dismissed Railtrack shareholders as grannies in blouses has just advertised her own unsuitability for addressing the difficulties that the victims of Gordon Brown's recession are facing."
Liberal Democrat treasury spokesman Vince Cable said: "With thousands of jobs being lost every day and many families at risk of repossession, recovery is sadly a long way off."
Reader views (25)
i am struggling to think of a way my life has benefited under labour and gordon brown.but i can think of plenty of ways my life in which my life has been made harder.
- James, leeds,yorkshire
Was it Gordon Brown, who said 'I ended Boom and Bust'!
He knows he was, and is, 100% wrong on finance and economy. He can sneak taxes from savings and pensions and take huge loans based on future generations earnings.
He would not see a boom if it hit him in the face.
Brown's guru, Mrs Vadera knows about banking, from overseas aid to small bust economies. Trying to do the same to the UK!
She and Brown did for Railtrack. Poor management excessive loans and bad planning and supervision. She used total contempt for shareholders and lost their savings. She and Brown ran it down to excuse a government takeover.
They have done the same to the UK economy. Contempt for shareholders, excessive loans, poor supervision and planning. So it goes wrong and Brown is enjoying this success. Now he can employ lots more people into state jobs and welfare to get a controlling block of voters.
The only trouble is he has ruined the UK economy, so it can not pay for 6 million state employees and 6 million on welfare.
Matthew Parris records what Brown said when he and Blair were selling changes to government policy to Ecclestone for £1m: 'I lied, I lied, I lied, my credibility is gone, I will be destroyed'!
Brown is a conman who tries to convince with his played up scots accent to sound like a scots banker. We now know what they can do. Go bust, cry and get bailed out.
- Ali, Bradford
@Chris Woking:
Noo, Broon is (still) then unelected PM....worth to remember non of these clowns, who call themselves the government were EVER elected and hence have NO LEGAL MANDATE.....
- Weddigen, London
No one rings a bell when the economy or the markets bottom. It's good that at least someone is attempting to balance the non-stop doom and gloom broadcasts with a mention of a flicker of light at the end of the tunnel .
- Doug Watt, london
We are almost in a Depression, with the weakest economy of the big countries in the world. We are in the worst position and this minister thinks all is fine????
- Jacqueline, Hampstead, London
Brown with his continual grin appears to be enjoying our credit crunch. This credit crunch does not apply to brown with his guaranteed salary and gold plated pension.
- John, dundee
This is Brown's adviser on Railtrack, which worked well at first, then Labour seemed to run it badly so they had to nationalise it. Brown has done the same to the UK economy. Now the most endebted on earth, Brown has borrowed against future earnings, future generations will have to pay back, as he stole pensions and savings, and has cut the savings ratio from 10% to zero.
Brown and cronies can tax, and tax, and tax, and know so little about markets, that as house prices and shares rose 30% a year Brown was claiming 'I ended boom and bust'. How incompetent can he be, to be so far wrong.
Brown and Vadera are from the same socialist model, which she set out in Uganda where international aid agencies rescued the economy and supervise it, while domestic people get state jobs and welfare. Fine for a tiny aid dependent African state, where jobless just go home to the village farm, but disaster for the UK.
Vadera's recipe for the UK is deadly poisonous.
- Jo, birmingham
What a joke this government is no wonder British Pound is the poor currency of the world. All the gaffes would be funny if it would not cost us working people so much!! It is all good for politicians but it is us paying for it through taxes and a worthless currency.
- Steveo, London NW1
I have no problem with Brown appointing people with a background in the real world. He is completely surrounded by career politicians. If you actually read what she said it is fairly reasonable.
- Alex C, London
The best it about this comment is Gordon Blair's recent rebuke "This is no time for novices", or was it This is no time for amateurs?
- Jeremiah, London
She made a simple error, I don't see why this is headline worthy. She had just heard that a company had succesfully raised hundreds of millions, which would not have happened a month ago, so that is a green shoot. A green shoot that is likely to wither and die, but a green shoot none the less.
- Tony Murtagh, Manchester UK
i must be the only person in the country who feels slightly sorry for her .....
we could all do with good news to cling to (however tenuous) and yet the poor womans getting pelted !!
how dare someone be slightly optimistic
- Simon Bucknell, enfield
Baroness Vadera and Lord Mandelson are chosen to be in government because they represent the political elite. They have not been elected; they have assumed power and authority because they have a belief that are your natural leaders, as such they don’t need to stand in elections and seek a mandate from the people.
This is what Gordon Browns means by democracy at its best.
- Ian, Reading, England
Is Mandelson the unelected Prime Minister these days.
- Chris, Woking. UK
I like the backhanded compliment from the insidious mandelson that she is the 'least complaicent' in the team. Does that not suggest that the rest of the department is complaicent? Not that we needed telling...
- Ag, The Village of London
What a crass and insensitive comment from a woman who clearly has no concept of the damaging climate Industry and Business is experiencing.
- John E, Northants
Currently this country is governed by a "Mickey Mouse" government.
- R.F.Yorks, Yorks, UK
Currently this country is governed by a "Mickey Mouse" government.
- R.F.Yorks, Yorks, UK
Do they not read the newspapers?
Just about every business is stuffed and getting worse and they think there are green shoots?
- Biffo, England
Why can we not just see who is popular by an election?
- Georgie, Islington, London
If, like an MP, my salary (and related perks) were increasing with a wilful disregard for common sense, I too would probably be hallucinating "green shoots" of economic recovery.
- John Entwistle, Hertford
Out of touch, and hopefully soon out of a job, too.
Also, is the quality of MPs really so poor that we have to pay unelected cronies to run government? Don't bother answering, it's a rhetorical question...
- Nobby Clark, Perth, Scotland
She doesn't have to worry as her gold plated pension will have green shoots aplenty. Have you noticed that - along with Mandy himself - she's another unelected official with a big say in running the country?
- Paul, London
Laird Mandleson - It is making a 50 bedroom Georgian mansion out of a two up two down terraced house.
PS, Got a mortgage on that ?
- Wills, Soton
I think this just goes towards the countrywide perception that this government is just completely of touch and has become an embarrassment.
- Sandy, London
