SO GEORGE, JUST HOW ACCURATE WAS PROJECT FEAR THEN?

As Treasury says Britain is ‘booming’ we ask former Chancellor

Lowest jobless for over 40 years Wage growth outstrips inflation

BRITAIN is on the brink of a new era of rising living standards, it was declared last night.

Chancellor Philip Hammond’s forecast makes a

mockery of predecessor George Osborne’s “Project Fear” predictions of doom and gloom for the UK’s economy after Brexit.

Official figures show that average wages are up by 2.8 per cent since last year and are beginning to outstrip inflation at last.

And more people are in jobs than ever before – a massive 32.2 million – with the jobless total down to its lowest level for 40 years.

The blast of economic good cheer led one Treasury minister to declare: “Britain is booming.”

Brexit supporters seized on the figures as fresh evidence that the economy has defied the predictions of the “project fear” doommongers, led by ex-chancellor Osborne.

And Mr Hammond used an exclusive article in the Daily Express to predict that millions of Britons can look forward to rising incomes in real terms.

The Chancellor wrote: “Thanks to the hard work of the British people, our economy is at a turning point.

“With inflation falling that will mean more money in your pocket. What we have achieved together is a credit to the hard-working people of this country and something we can all be proud of.”

Mr Hammond and his Treasury team were buoyed by a raft of economic good news from the Office for National Statistics.

Figures showed employment increased by 55,000 in the three months to February to 32.2 million, the highest total since records began in 1971.

Unemployment fell by 16,000 to 1.42 million, leaving just 4.2 per cent of the workforce jobless.

It was the lowest unemployment rate since 1975.

The figures also showed that average earnings increased by 2.8 per cent in the year to last Febru- ary, the highest since September 2015.

The figure was above the CPI measure of inflation at 2.7 per cent, which is expected to remain unchanged when the latest figures are released today.

Brexit campaigners were delighted the data once again defied the widespread predictions of economic disaster if the country voted to leave the EU.

Ability

Former Tory Cabinet minister John Redwood said: “This is extremely good news, showing more jobs and better wages contrary to the stupid forecasts before the referendum.

“The UK economy shows a great ability to create more jobs and increase pay. We want to see more of this.”

At Treasury Questions in the Commons yesterday, Mr Hammond’s deputy Elizabeth Truss declared that Britain was “booming”. She said: “A record number of businesses are starting. We saw double the amount of investment in tech companies last year compared with the previous year.

“Britain is booming, and that is because we have taken the important measures of reforming our welfare system, making it easier to take on staff and reducing corporation tax.

“The Labour Party wants to stop all that, raise taxes and make it harder for businesses to succeed.”

Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey said: “Another milestone for employment has been reached under this Government as employment reaches a record high.”

The data showed the number of people classed as economically inactive, including students, those on long-term sick leave or who have given up looking for work, fell by 2,000 to 8.7 million in the latest quarter, giving a rate of 21 per cent, a joint record low.