The reversal of the increase in employers’ NIC contributions planned by the former Labour government is a good thing, according to Dean Kelly, chief executive at public sector recruiter Synarbor.

Kelly says: “The Con-Lib alliance may be a contrarian one, but it is one that must be embraced for the  ‘mix to work’. A scrapping of the 2011 NI increase, with the addition of a new £10k tax free threshold for those less well paid, is a good thing for both jobs and the economy.

“The only way out of this  economic black hole is to prime for growth, cut tax, incentivise wealth generators and prepare well for austere times. It looks much better than before, but its still a very fragile.”