Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in England could hurt economy
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Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in England could hurt economy
Stacey Vanek Smith: Over in the U.K., a lot of worries that the country is sliding back into a recession. And the Brits are fingering a surprising culprit: the Queen. It seems this year’s Diamond Jubilee — which celebrates her 60th year on the throne — could be a bad thing for the economy.
Marketplace’s Stephen Beard explains why the country is blaming it on the reign.
Stephen Beard: The royal festivities will reach a peak in June. There’s a public holiday, with parades and street parties. But the governor of the Bank of England has poured cold water over the proceedings. He’s grumbling about the loss of worker productivity during the celebrations. He says it could tip Britain back into recession.
Howard Archer of IHS Global Insight agrees, but he says you can’t blame her Majesty for the downturn.
Howard Archer: The problem is the U.K. economy is struggling and it’s probably growing modestly but not by much. And so it takes very little to cause the economy either to stagnate or slip back into recession.
Some hope the Jubilee itself will raise spirits and actually give a boost to the British economy, but that’s not what happened last year with the Royal Wedding. The Governor of the Bank of England said that hit productivity as workers stayed home and partied.
In London, I’m Stephen Beard for Marketplace.
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