Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of the estimate in the September 2026 Oxford Economics report, titled The UK’s Investment Shortfall, that closing the UK’s business investment gap with G7 nations could increase real household disposable income by £1,540 annually by 2040.

Raising investment is critical to raising living standards, as Oxford Economics’ report lays out. That is why increasing investment is central to the Government’s approach to growth, as outlined by the Chancellor on 7 September. The government is taking action to mobilise public and private capital – including through its Public Financial Institutions, such as the National Wealth Fund and British Business Bank, which are attracting more private investment into growth-enhancing projects. Investment has grown strongly since the start of this parliament, rising by 6.9%, driven by robust government and business investment.

This stronger growth is already benefiting households. Real household disposable income has increased by 1.8% since the start of this Parliament, after falling by 1.7% in the previous Parliament. This has left the average person's real disposable income around £650 higher in the past year than the final year of the previous Parliament.