英伦广角 Issue 122 英财相称英国经济遭遇六十年来
Alistair Darling says Britain is facing its worst economic crisis since the 1940s. The chancellor 1 is warning the current downturn will hit harder and last longer than we expect. It's the government's grimmest assessment 2 to date of the situation facing the British economy. Mr. Darling says conditions here and abroad are now arguably the worst they’ve been for 60 years.
In an interview with the Guardian 3 newspaper, he also admitted ministers had failed to explain the problem to voters, and that they were understandably angry with Labors’ handling of the situation. His comments are likely to prove controversial. They are much more negative than those expressed publicly by Gordon Brown.
However, Mr. Darling's remarks come after somewhat bad economic news.
House prices are falling at their fastest rate in 18 years, leading to fears of a wave of repossessions in the upcoming months.
Mortgage lending has slowed dramatically due to the credit crunch 4. And evidence suggests that Britain could be poised 5 to go into a recession in the near future. The most recent GDP figures show no economic growth in the second quarter of the year, while building firms and retailers 6 have laid off thousands of staff in recent weeks. Amid fears, things will deteriorate 7 even further.
- They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
- He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。
- This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
- What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？
- The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
- The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。
- If it comes to the crunch they'll support us.关键时刻他们是会支持我们的。
- People who crunch nuts at the movies can be very annoying.看电影时嘎吱作声地嚼干果的人会使人十分讨厌。
- The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
- Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。
- High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
- Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。
- Do you think relations between China and Japan will continue to deteriorate?你认为中日关系会继续恶化吗？
- He held that this would only cause the situation to deteriorate further.他认为，这只会使局势更加恶化。