Osborne's Austerity Cost UK 2% in Lost GDP, BOE Analysis Shows.

According to a newly published Bank of England research, George Osborne's austerity program in the UK after the Conservative party came to power in 2010 resulted in a loss of more than 2% of GDP. The tight public spending plans and tax increases implemented by Osborne to fix the public finances after the 2008 financial crisis caused a decline in GDP by "a little over 2%" by 2015. The subsequent goal to balance the books would have increased the total cost to "nearly 3%" of GDP by 2017. The Bank of England's findings contribute to concerns that the UK may face another round of austerity after the upcoming election. The 2015 BOE paper acknowledges that some austerity measures were necessary, but Osborne went further than required, resulting in a 1.5% decrease in GDP. [Extracted from the article]