Our Man in Westminster

Are you feeling expansive this week? The latest statistical snapshot from Barclays Bank suggests you might be. Barclays looks regularly at business and consumer behaviour in each town, and in the first quarter of this year we spent two per cent more than in the same period last year.

The average person in Ashford spends 7% more than the average person in the UK.

The biggest increases come at either end of the age range, with a very significant increase among the over-60s, and a smaller but solid one among the under-30s. In terms of earnings, the largest increase came among those earning less than £15,000 a year.

Inevitably the housing market is always fascinating for many people. The average sale price in Ashford is £274,774, and the monthly repayment is £628.

This is higher than the national average of £587 but lower than the average for the South East.

At the same time, personal savings have increased by 4% in a year. The biggest increase, in one of the more surprising figures in this survey, came among those aged between 30 and 39.

Maybe people are having children later, as the 40-somethings have seen a big fall in their savings.

For small businesses, turnover was up by a 10th in a year. No one will be shocked to learn that the largest number of small businesses in Ashford are in the construction and real estate sector.

The next two largest sectors are professional and administration, and retail.

To end on a cheerful note, we are on average doing a little better in Ashford than the rest of the country.

Just over half of Ashford residents are earning more than the national average pay.

Combining this with a fall in unemployment of nearly a third in the past year paints a relatively bright picture.