Food budgets bear brunt of unprecedented fall in spending Spending will also take several more years to recover pre recession levels meaning JOb 2011

The Institute for Fiscal Studies said that, unlike in previous recessions, families have reacted to a squeeze on living standards by cutting back the amount they spend on food and drink.

Spending on holidays and restaurant meals has also been sacrificed, the economists said. By contrast, spending on “durable” items like cars and electrical goods saw smaller falls.

The research also highlighted significant variations in the way households have adjusted their spending, with younger people cutting back much more than their elders.

People under 35 cut back their spending by an average of seven percentage points. For those between 35 and 64, the drop was five points. Yet for those aged 65 and over, there was “no statistically significant fall”.

Consumer spending accounts for about two thirds of economic activity in Britain. The study, which is published today, found that, because of the last recession, household expenditure saw the deepest and longest drop in recent history.

Spending will also take several more years to recover to its pre-recession levels, meaning Britain’s economic recovery will be slow and painful, the paper said.

Average household spending fell by almost 5 per cent in real terms between the first quarter of 2008 and the second quarter of 2009, the IFS calculated.

Spending on food was 6.6 per cent down. The paper suggested that the fall in spending did not necessarily mean households were eating less. Rather, the figures could reflect a greater tendency to purchase cheaper types of food.

By contrast, spending on motoring was down 3.2 per cent and durable leisure goods dropped 1.6 per cent.

That suggests that two of the Labour government’s economic policies – a temporary reduction in the rate of VAT and a car scrappage scheme – had “some success in encouraging households to bring forward some durable purchases”.

The IFS also suggested that spending would remain depressed for some time. Even on the “optimistic” official forecasts, household spending would not return to its pre-crisis levels until 2013.

A five-year period of reduced consumer spending would be almost twice as long as that endured after previous recessions. The IFS team also suggested that the period of pain could be even longer if the official forecasts prove to be too high.

Cormac O’Dea, a senior economist at the IFS, said households had suffered more during the recent recession. He said: “Continued economic weakness has gone hand in hand with continued low levels of household spending and the drop in spending since 2008 has been unprecedented in recent history both in its scale and its persistence.”

Official figures this month showed that household spending on essentials like food and fuel had fallen to the lowest level in almost a decade as families tightened their belts amid growing fears for the economy. The data showed household spending had shrunk for four consecutive quarters, meaning that the consumer economy had fallen into back into recession

Job Description:

Reporting to the VAT/GST Operations Leader, this position will be responsible for

-Managing a GE 'in-house' VAT Operations team for the BeNeLux region, delivering VAT reporting and related services to GE businesses in the area.
-Ensuring that all VAT returns and associated statistical returns for client businesses are filed and paid on time.
-Planning a programme of audits of client business VAT return processes to ensure accuracy of filings.
-Working with BeNeLux Technical VAT Manager to resolve any inaccuracies identified during return cycle or audit programme, including the coordination of error correction submissions to tax authorities.
-To be the primary contact point between the tax authorities and client business, providing audit support during inspections and audits by the tax authorities.
-Provide feedback to client businesses on issues identified and progress to be made to drive up standards in VAT reporting.
-Actively communicating the scope of VAT Reporting and related services offered by VAT Operations Team.
-Maintenance of GE legal entities on the GE Corporate VAT Reporting and E Compliance tools.
-Training GE finance teams on the use of the on-line tools and assisting with the implementation of new VAT return tools.
-Managing and developing the pricing strategy for the BeNeLux region, ensuring SLAs are in place for all services.
-Working with other VAT/GST Operations teams to share best practise and lessons learned in dealing with GE businesses that have VAT/GST obligations in multiple jurisdictions

Candidate Requirements:

-Experienced VAT professional OR qualified accountant qualification or equivalent with broad finance experience.
-Good working knowledge of VAT required preferably with cross-border transaction knowledge
and experience.
-Ability to communicate (written and verbal) effectively in Dutch & English

Type of job:	Entry-level job
Job open to:	Graduates
Job starts on:	Not specified
Job ends on:	Not specified
Required languages:	English (fluent) AND Dutch (advanced)
Open to these areas of study:	Accountancy, Banking, Business Studies, Economics, Engineering, Engineering - Aeronautical, Engineering - Agronomy, Engineering - Chemical, Engineering - Civil, Engineering - Computer, Engineering - Electrical, Engineering - Electronic, Engineering - Mechanical, Engineering - Technology, Financial Management, Hospitality - Catering/Hotel Management, Industrial Relations and Personnel Management, Management Science, Manufacturing Sciences (including CAD - CAM - CAE), Marketing and Sales Management, Materials Science, Secretarial Studies, Telecommunications, Tourism