Star comment: Long way to healthy economy

The economy had been bought to its knees and hard times lay ahead. Mr Osborne's austerity measures promised unpleasant medicine with unprecedented cuts to public services.

Fast forward five years and the picture is significantly better.

Mr Osborne was yesterday seemingly able to give away money in the form of tax breaks. There were measures designed to win votes. A new personal allowance means 95 per cent of savers will pay no tax on their savings and the Government is creating a new help-to-buy ISA which will help new home owners get onto the property ladder.

Tax cuts via a rise in personal allowances, cuts to beer, cider and spirit duties, and axing a planned fuel duty rise mean we should all be a little better off.

Few would argue against the notion that the economy is in a better state than it was five years ago. But many would dispute the role the Conservative government has played in this improvement in fortunes. They would also contend there is a long way to go before we can be convinced that the nation's economy is truly healthy.

Here in Shropshire and Mid Wales, we have seen the rise of the food bank. An underclass is dependent on handouts, while a generation of youngsters is growing up with little hope of being able to afford a home.

Economic growth is increasing faster in Britain than in almost any developed economy in the world. And yet the disparity between rich and poor is also growing.

Mr Osborne has presided over an economy that has emerged from the doldrums and is moving in the right direction more quickly than competing nations. But Britain still needs to manufacture more. It still needs to bring down its debt. It still needs to invest in better infrastructure and incentivise business and entrepreneurs.

Yesterday, the Chancellor said the the sun was starting to shine as he predicted the beginning of the end of austerity. But without prudent management of the nation's books, storm clouds could easily roll back in.

Britain far from fully recovered:

Billboards in Shropshire are warning voters not to forsake our economic recovery.

They depict a wrecking ball smashing into plywood and come with a stark warning.

The posters are overtly political, of course, as we head towards an election. And the electors will be the people who decide which party, or parties, are the best-placed to manage the nation's finances.

Behind the politics, however, is an important point and it is this: the economic recovery is far from complete.

While much attention has turned to yesterday's pre-election budget – a vote-pleasing, giveaway that will win the Conservatives favour among many – other news was breaking. A new report showed that the local economy suffered disappointing news.

The region's jobless increased for a second consecutive month, despite the employment figure improving in the rest of the country.

The reality of the nation's economy is that it remains fragile and precarious. As a country, we need to manufacture and export more, rather than rely on a service economy.

We need increased innovation and training, we need to export ideas and expertise.

The local economy illustrates with great clarity that considerable work is required before our nation's leaders can herald a true return to prosperity.