Closed for business: Two thirds of people think Britain is heading for another recession |
Two thirds of the British public fear that the UK is heading for another recession, a survey showed today. The news came as it was revealed that Britain has been rated the second worst country in Europe to live in. And while 85 percent of people say that the eurozone crisis has endangered the UK economy, a new report suggests that Britain's economic slowdown predated the recent turmoil. More than half - 59 percent - of Britons are cutting back on spending in anticipation of another recession, according to a ComRes poll. Almost three quarters said they were worried that another recession would have a severe impact on them and their family, while just 13 percent said they would not expect to be affected. But fewer than one in five - 18 percent - believe Britain should contribute more money to help solve the eurozone's financial crisis, if it would help avoid another recession. The survey of more than 2,000 people showed that 77 percent believe the crisis proved the UK was right to stay out of the eurozone, and about the same number think the eurozone debt crisis has been badly managed by Europe's political leaders. Another study, a report by think-tank Demos entitled 'Good Growth', suggests that Britain is one of the worst places to live in Europe. Judging by factors such as health, housing and the job market, the report said that only Spain was a less desirable home than the UK. The best places to live are Norway, Germany and the Netherlands, said the study. Fears of another British recession will be reinforced by findings from the OECD, a respected think-tank, which say that the UK economy has been slowing for at least seven months. Britain is not the only country facing a worse economic outlook, as all of the other G7 industrial nations are suffering from a similar slowdown. But the fact that the UK's economy has been sluggish since before Greece started heading for default undermines the Government's argument that Britain's poor performance is the fault of the eurozone. (Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
今日發(fā)布的一項調(diào)查顯示,三分之二的英國民眾擔心英國將遭遇新一輪經(jīng)濟衰退。與此同時,調(diào)查還揭示,英國被評為歐洲第二大不適合居住的國家。 85%的人認為,歐元區(qū)危機已經(jīng)危及英國經(jīng)濟,而一項新報告指出,在本次經(jīng)濟動蕩發(fā)生之前,英國經(jīng)濟就已經(jīng)在減速了。 ComRes的調(diào)查顯示,超過半數(shù)(59%)的英國人正在削減開支,以應(yīng)對可能到來的新一輪經(jīng)濟衰退。 近四分之三的英國人稱,他們擔心新一輪經(jīng)濟衰退會給自己和自己的家庭帶來嚴重的沖擊,只有13%的人說他們認為自己不會受到影響。 不過,不到五分之一(18%)的人認為,如果有助于避免新一輪經(jīng)濟衰退,英國就應(yīng)該拿出更多錢,幫助解決歐元區(qū)的金融危機。 這項涵蓋了2000多人的調(diào)查顯示,77%的人認為這次危機證明英國不加入歐元區(qū)是正確的,另外有數(shù)量相近的人的認為歐洲的政治領(lǐng)導人在處理歐元區(qū)的債務(wù)危機上很失敗。 另一項由智囊團Demos撰寫的題為“良性增長”的研究報告指出,英國是歐洲最不適宜居住的地方之一。 這一研究報告稱,從健康、住房和就業(yè)市場等多種因素來看,全歐洲只有西班牙比英國更不適宜居住。該研究稱,最適宜居住的地方是挪威、德國和荷蘭。 經(jīng)濟合作與發(fā)展組織的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)將進一步加劇人們對英國新一輪經(jīng)濟衰退的擔心。這一受敬重的智囊團說,英國經(jīng)濟增速放緩已經(jīng)持續(xù)了至少七個月。 英國不是唯一一個經(jīng)濟前景慘淡的國家,七國集團的所有其他工業(yè)國也同樣面臨經(jīng)濟減速的困境。 不過,英國經(jīng)濟在希臘陷入債務(wù)危機之前就已經(jīng)開始停滯不前了,這一事實削弱了英國政府所持的歐元區(qū)造成英國經(jīng)濟頹勢的論點。 相關(guān)閱讀 (中國日報英語點津 陳丹妮 編輯:Julie) |
Vocabulary: predate: 在日期上早于 |