If the economy is to improve, the government must put the work in

Editorial: The first task is to ensure that inflation returns to its target rate without crashing the economy still further

The outlook is unavoidably glum (PA)

It would be churlish to deny that the fact of the UK having narrowly escaped recession in the opening months of 2023 is at least a glimmer of good news.

Were it not for the wave of strikes – whatever their inevitability or their merits – the economy would have performed a little better. There is some evidence that business investment has responded to the generous “super-deduction” tax allowance for new capital spending; and, more widely, the Bank of England has indicated that inflation and interest rate rises may well moderate in the coming months.

By the time of the coronation in the summer, inflation should be well on its way to halving, as Rishi Sunak has promised, and the festivities themselves will probably give tourism and retail sales a modest boost.