Cameron: “Red warning lights” loom over state of global economy

Prime Minister David Cameron has warned of a “dangerous backdrop of instability” in the global economy, which could threaten Britain’s economic recovery.

Writing in the Guardian after the G20 meeting of world leaders in Australia, Cameron insisted that his government should stick to its “long-term plan”, but noted that the world faces a number of problems that negatively impact global trade.

He warned:

“The eurozone is teetering on the brink of a possible third recession, with high unemployment, falling growth and the real risk of falling prices too. Emerging markets, which were the driver of growth in the early stages of the recovery, are now slowing down. Despite the progress in Bali, global trade talks have stalled while the epidemic of Ebola, conflict in the Middle East and Russia’s illegal actions in Ukraine are all adding a dangerous backdrop of instability and uncertainty.”

Cameron pointed to the recovery of the UK economy as one of the few economic positives on the global market, with the fastest growing economy in the G7 and “employment up 1.75 million in four years”. He went on to make the case for continued austerity, saying that it would not work to “spend, borrow and tax our way to prosperity”.

However, Labour shadow foreign secretary Douglas Alexander contended that “most working people in Britain aren’t feeling a recovery” and are “feeling less secure and worrying about their future, whilst David Cameron claims that his recovery is working.”