§ Mr. WigginTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the trends in productivity growth; and what the latest productivity growth figures are. [73746]
§ John HealeyThe Government's most recent assessment of trends in productivity growth was set out in Budget 2002 (HC 592) and the accompanying paper "Trend Growth: Recent Developments and Prospects". We will publish an updated assessment in this year's Pre-Budget Report.
611WLatest figures show whole economy productivity picked up strongly and grew at above trend rates between the first and second quarters of 2002, with output per job rising by 0.7 per cent and output per hour rising by 1.1 per cent.