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we've been inspired by the Chancellor's
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enthusiasm and optimism we've been
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motivated by her belief that our best
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days lie ahead and we've answered the
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government's call to do our bit for
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growth to reach for the stars and so as
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you can see we're moving up in the world
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welcome to Cam's weekend business with
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may this was the week when Barkley
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became the latest big employer to
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tighten up its work from home policies
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now requiring staff to come into the
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office at least 3 days a week apply some
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might say suspicious Chinese AI app
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scared the chips out of US tech Giants
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the leftwing resolution Foundation Think
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Tank warned the government that the
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chances of sticking to their fiscal
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rules are now on a knife edge and the
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competition Watchdog got to work under
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its new chairman hosting a brainstorming
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session on progrowth ideas with City
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Grandes but it's politicians making the
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headlines and there was lots of talk of
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a government reset this week with a bold
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new focus on growth but it seems someone
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reset Rachel Reeves too and the new
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upgraded version of our Chancellor is
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relentlessly optimistic and determined
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to smile now the effect of all this
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smiling and enthusing reminded me a bit
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of late stage Gordon Brown who was
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obviously constantly told to smile but
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being unsure of when exactly he should
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do it he just tried to do it all the
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time which didn't really work but what
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did we learn from our new tiger-like
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Chancellor well there was lots to like
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no doubt about that a genuine effort to
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strip Troublesome Regulators of the
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power to block vital developments new
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runways Here There and Everywhere new
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house building new pounds new Rail lines
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it was heady stuff and I welcome it all
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of it but permit me just one observation
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where has this Zeal come from if the
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labor Manifesto had said we're going to
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build a third Runway at Heath plus a few
1:42
more at Gatwick and Luen and we're going
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to build a new town between Oxford and
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Cambridge and we're going to rip up
1:47
environmental regulations in fact we're
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going to go on a massive deregulatory
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push inspired by Margaret Thatcher well
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I'd probably have voted for them but
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they didn't say they were going to do
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any of that which means either it was a
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secret plan that they didn't feel could
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trust the voters with or it's a sudden
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plan born out of panic because it turns
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out there was no actual growth lever in
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Downing Street maybe it doesn't matter
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how we got here maybe we should all just
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join the growth train but the contrast
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the contradiction even between the
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government's first six months what they
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did in those first six months and their
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new position is so glaring that it
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cannot be ignored not least because we
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know that the damage of the first six
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months has scarred the economy and the
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effects of that will continue to be felt
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long before any of the benefits of their
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new growth push are felt just imagine
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how different things could be if the
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chancellor gave Wednesday's growth
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speech in July last year straight out of
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the blocks why didn't she now I spoke
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this week to the head of small business
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banking at one of the big High Street
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lenders and two things stood out from
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that conversation now firstly they told
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me that the entrepreneurial spirit is
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still burning bright in this country
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people have ideas ambition energy that's
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the good news the bad news is that too
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many businesses are finding it too hard
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to deal with the consequences of the
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budget the higher cost costs the higher
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taxes and they fear the burdens coming
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down the track from employment rights
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reform I heard about people running
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small Pub chains holiday Parks hotels
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all cutting staff cancelling investment
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putting up prices and in some cases
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throwing in the towel that's the part of
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the economy that we should keep in mind
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when a grinning Chancellor tells us to
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cheer up little wonder that today's
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business confidence barometer from
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Lloyd's Bank showed firms at their
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gloomiest they've been in over a year
3:28
now snap servy taken after the
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Chancellor's speech including one by
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consultancy WPI strategy shows a great
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deal of support among Business Leaders
3:36
for the infrastructure plans announced
3:38
and as I said I like much of what was
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promised but it seems many of us many
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businesses are now in a strange State
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excited about the promise of a distant
3:47
future but justifiably fearful of the
3:50
present that's the tension we're in
3:52
heading into the second month of this
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year and while it's clear that the
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government is determined to try a new
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approach powered by broad Smiles
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optimistic buzzword and some welcome
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plans for the future winter is far from
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over now that said the sun will shine
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every day here in the city am Studios so
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have a great weekend and we'll see you
