Post-Covid consumer spending boom 'implausible', says Treasury official

Charlie Bean of Office for Budget Responsibility says savings of higher earners more likely to be spent over several years

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The prospects for a consumer spending boom after lockdown have been downplayed by a senior Treasury official, amid warnings that wealthier families have saved more than low-paid workers during the pandemic.

Charlie Bean, a former Bank of England deputy governor who sits on the government's budget responsibility committee, said it would take several years for households to spend 180bn in extra savings accumulated mainly by retirees and higher-paid workers during the crisis.