UK COMPETITIVENESS

That this House notes that since 1997 the UK has fallen from fourth to 10th place in the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Index and that the International Institute for Management Development World Competitiveness Yearbook shows that the UK has slipped from ninth place in 1997 to 21st in 2006; further notes that the UK has a record trade deficit of £45 billion; and calls on the Government to reverse its trend of bringing forward policies that harm UK competitiveness.