The budget, 5 steps to make Britain great

It's budget time and the big question is 'how do we grow Britain’s economy in a global recession?' Wonder no more, I have a plan. Simple visions are best and mine is for Britain to rule the design world, the way China rules manufacturing.

China are best at manufacturing. Their huge, well-educated workforce, with modern global communications manufacture everything for everyone. How did it happen? Financial incentives and time; when a China factory exports a product, their government pay them another 17% of the selling price. It’s like VAT in reverse so their businessmen rush around looking for ways to sell more to foreign customers. Their massive economy now grows another 10% each year and billionaires spring up like Himalayan Balsam. Money is rolling into China like giant tsunamis.

In case nobody noticed, British designers are the best in the world. Whether we are designing Spitfire airplanes to defend our land, building Formula 1 cars more advanced than spaceships or guiding super-brands like Apple, British designers are top dogs. Eccentric, individual and confident, we’re made for it.

It works too, take Gtech; we start with an idea and a clean sheet of paper and create new products to enrich people’s lives. Most of them are exported so it’s real growth and the advantages are legion; jobs are created, support industries grow and the government gets half of everything to run the country and support the needy.

So Mr. Chancellor, a simple strategy; set conditions to grow design, then leave them alone. Young designers will emerge confident, hungry and capable. Small companies are key, they drop like flies when the economy is bad, but are most creative and grow fastest when watered:
1. Reward export of British designed goods with cold cash – 10% of gross profit export rebate straight away, regardless of where they're made.
2. Grow before you harvest; reverse all the silly European tax increases.
3. Help the credit crunch, cap domestic payment terms to small business at 30 days.
4. Creatives hate bureaucracy and being told what to do, cut the red tape and forget about enterprise zones, they only line crony pockets.
5. R&D Tax credits work fine, don’t even dream of reducing them.