Back in 1987 there was much jubilation in Italy when, for the first time, the size of the Italian economy overtook that of the UK. The Italians nicknamed it "il Sorpasso" ('the surpass'). Unfortunately for them it didn't last long and the UK economy has now been consistently larger since the mid 1990s. However today marks Ynys Môn's own "il sorpasso" moment as it finally overtakes Gwent Valleys to become officially the second poorest region in Wales, and the third poorest in the UK.
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| The 'il sorpasso' moment: Ynys Môn no longer bottom of this table. Top five and bottom five GVA per head regions, 2009. Source: ONS |
We know this from the latest regional GVA per head figures released by the Office for National Statistics this morning, and reproduced above. As it happens, it appears that our "il sorpasso" moment may have actually came and passed unnoticed in 2004 — historical GVA data revised in line with new EU standards which were also released by the ONS today show that Ynys Môn actually overtook Gwent Valleys back in 2004. The Telegraph has the full story.
Unlike Italy in 1987, these figures do not really provide much cause for celebration on Anglesey: being the third poorest region out of 133 sub-regions in the UK is not much of an improvement. But at least we are no longer last.
6 comments:
Diddorol iawn Paul..Pwy sydd ar fai ?????
'But at least we are no longer last.'
And for this we can thank the commissioners! End of.
Now let's concentrate on getting rid of the waste that is represented by each and every one of our local councillors!
KP
"And for this we can thank the commissioners! End of."
These figures relate to 2009 - a year and a half before the arrival of the Commissioners!
Oh well, it was a good try!
Perhaps they were already pulling the strings during this phase!
Either way, Rock on the Commissioners!
KP - you are a persistent at least. In fact, as I noted in the post, the revised figures show an revival in the Island's fortunes since around 2004 - a long time before any Welsh Government intervention into Ynys Môn.
KP - You often bemoan the education standards in Wales but from your comment you can't have read & understood Paul's post today.
R.T.F.B.
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