Neil Woodford reiterated won't Damage UK Economy

Leaving the EU would not necessarily damage the UK economy, fund manager Neil Woodford has reiterated.

He said he disagreed with the views expressed by FTSE 100 bosses in a letter published on Tuesday.

 

Heads of companies including BT, Marks & Spencer and Vodafone said an EU exit would deter investment

in the UK.

But Mr Woodford argued it was very difficult to build a credible economic argument for the UK either staying in or leaving the union.

Official Figures Shows UK Economy Grew by 0.5% in fourth quarter

The Office for National Statistics show an improvement on the third quarter figure of 0.4%.

But the 2.2% annual growth in 2015 was down compared with 2.9% in 2014.

Output in the three months to December was 1.9% higher than a year earlier, down from 2.1% in the third quarter and the smallest increase since early 2013.

Despite the annual pace of growth being the slowest for three years, it still means the UK economy is one of the fastest growing developed nations.

Heathrow Airport delay "Tearing their hair out, says business group

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said it was "gutless", while another group said it would have business leaders "tearing their hair out". 

They argue that the delay is bad for the UK economy.

But opponents welcomed the government's plan to wait for further environmental research before making a decision.

No decision will be made before the summer of 2016, it was announced on Thursday.

Three options