Noyer, who is head of the central bank in Paris, spoke out following speculation that France will be stripped of its AAA credit rating.
He fumed that it would be unfair because Britain’s finances are in a much worse state. Noyer said it “doesn’t strike me as justified based on economic fundamentals.
“Or if it is, they should start by downgrading the UK, which has a bigger deficit, as much debt, more inflation, weaker growth and where bank lending is collapsing,” he added.
The attack came the day after French president Nicolas Sarkozy plunged relations with Britain to a new low by branding PM David Cameron a “kid’ for wielding his veto at the euro rescue summit.
Downing Street hit back at Noyer, claiming the low interest rates that the international bond markets are charging on UK debts compared with other parts of Europe showed he was wrong.
The PM’s spokesman said: “We have put in place a credible plan for dealing with our deficit and the credibility of that plan can be seen in what has happened to bond yields.”
Labour MPs on the Commons Treasury committee said that Noyer was right to highlight the risks to the UK’s credit rating after the coalition’s economic policies choked off the recovery.
He fumed that it would be unfair because Britain’s finances are in a much worse state. Noyer said it “doesn’t strike me as justified based on economic fundamentals.
“Or if it is, they should start by downgrading the UK, which has a bigger deficit, as much debt, more inflation, weaker growth and where bank lending is collapsing,” he added.
The attack came the day after French president Nicolas Sarkozy plunged relations with Britain to a new low by branding PM David Cameron a “kid’ for wielding his veto at the euro rescue summit.
Downing Street hit back at Noyer, claiming the low interest rates that the international bond markets are charging on UK debts compared with other parts of Europe showed he was wrong.
The PM’s spokesman said: “We have put in place a credible plan for dealing with our deficit and the credibility of that plan can be seen in what has happened to bond yields.”
Labour MPs on the Commons Treasury committee said that Noyer was right to highlight the risks to the UK’s credit rating after the coalition’s economic policies choked off the recovery.
