The Guardian Biden’s clean energy act paves Britain’s way to post-Brexit growth. Should we copy him? Level 2: Intermediate @ Warmer Read the names below. Run a quick web search about them and write down what you consider important information about th 1. Joe Biden: 2. Rishi Sunak: 3. Keir Starmer: @ Key words Complete the sentences using the words in the box. act attendees budget concerns current economy equivalent green growth invest policies production recession referendum —_ spreads subsidies upcoming 1. To___in something is to provide money for something, lke a project ora fund, 2. Isomething is ________ it exists now. 3. An_____is awritten law passed by a government. 4. are people who go to an event, such as a conference or a forum. 5. Describing things as means they are related to protecting the environment and not polluting, 6 A____is a period when trade and industry are not successful and there is a lot of unemployment. 7. Agovernment prepares its ‘every year, which is a financial plan for how and when they will spend money. a ____ are money given to companies or organizations by the government, when what they are doing helps people or society. 9. If something it gradually affects a larger area. 10.____means the same or equal to.The,. r v Guardian Biden’s clean energy act paves Britain's way to post-Brexit growth. Should we copy him? Level 2: Intermediate 11. When a country is doing well financially and there are lots of people with jobs, this would be described as 12. The ________is the world of finances and money in a country or society 13, _______are ideas politicians have that they have written down and want to tum into law. 14, Ifyouhave____________ it means you are worried or nervous about something, 15, A___________is when everyone in a country can vote to make a decision about ‘one particular subject. 16._________is the process of making things in large quantities, especially in a factory, so that they can be sold. 17. Something that is planned to happen soon could be referred to as b. Insmail groups, try to use the words in sentences of your own. Share your sentences with each other.The Guardian Biden’s clean energy act paves Britain’s way to post-Brexit growth. Should we copy him? Level 2: Intermediate Larry Elliott 26 January, 2023 1. After 15 years of bad economic performance for the United Kingdom, the prediction is for a ‘small recession in 2023 2 British politicians know they have a problem. In the past 13 years, five ifferent prime ministers have suggested diferent ways to improve the ‘economy, none of which have helped. The ‘current Chancellor of the Exchequer says his upcoming budget will be all about economic. ‘growth, but the situation is unlikely to change very quickly 3. There is now a search for policies that will not only improve the economy but do so in a \way that spreads the benefts of growth to the poorer pars of the country Politicians, ike Rishi Sunak or Keir Starmer, could start by taking a look at what Joe Biden is doing on the other side ofthe Atlantic wth his Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) 4. The purpose ofthe IRA is not really to deal with the cost of living in the US. Instead, it offers subsidies to companies that set up clean-energy factories in the US and tax breaks for people who buy new electric, vehicles produced there. The President of the United States’ new act was a popular topic of ‘conversation at the World Economic Forum in January, 2023. 5 There were lots of World Economic Forum allendees who strongly supported the IRA. former US treasury secretary said it was ‘a positive thing for the US to do. France's Finance Minister, Bruno Le Maire, said it was ‘a.good thing the US was giving companies a reason to invest in green technology and that the EU should do the same, 6 Some people in the UK agree. The head of the Confederation of British Industry, Tony Danker, said earlier in January that it was possible for the UK to lead the world in green technology and businesses but only iit changed its way of thinking 7 Unfortunately, the current UK government doesn't feel the same way. Grant Shapps, the Business Secretary, said recently that Britain didn’t need something similar to the IRA because it was already doing better than the US in terms of green energy. Kemi Badenoch, the Trade Secretary, has concerns about what Biden's plan was causing other countries to do in response in recent talks with the US and the EU 8 Adifferent approach wil probably require a change of government. Aman who wants that, the Leader of the Opposition, Keir Starmer, used his visit to the World Economic Forum to talk about his ideas for a green economic plan While it won't please all Labour supporters, ‘Starmers thinking has changed since the days when he was supporting a second EU referendum. Supporters of Broxit have always argued that leaving the EU provided ‘an opportunity to use state aid, subsidies and tax breaks to increase the Uk’s production ‘of goods and improve the economy, and the Labour leader seems to be slowly warming to some of those ideas. 9 Clearly, the UK could never spend as much money as the US on a plan like this, but it makes sense to borrow for investments that would possibly improve the economy and help the environment. AUK equivalent of an IRA doesn't have to cost a lot of money because, as Danker said in his speech, there are smart ways in which the government can ‘spend money to support this area of trade and business. 410 And ifthe Confederation of British Industry can ‘support these ideas, then there is no reason why Keir Starmer and Labour should nat do the same, © Guaran News and Media 2023 Fist published in The Guarian, 26/2028,The,. r v Guardian Biden’s clean energy act paves Britain's way to post-Brexit growth. Should we copy him? Level 2: Intermediate © Comprehension check a, Write the correct paragraph number (1-10) next to each paragraph summary. An expert believes that the UK should invest in green technology and businesses but that there needs to be more support for these ideas. _— British politicians keep trying to think of ways improve the economy, but i's difficult and will take time. — Keir Starmer believes that doing something similar to Joe Biden would be a good idea. _— Some politicians from different countries think that the Inflation Reduction Act is a good model for what their own countries should do. _— The President of the United States has created an act that the UK could possibly copy to improve their economy, The current UK government doesn't believe they should copy the Inflation Reduction Act, The Inflation Reduction Act gives green companies subsidies and helps people save money if they buy green technology, such as electric cars. The act is being talked about internationally. _— The UK has had a bad economy far a long time and itis unlikely to get better in 2023. _— The writer concludes by saying that if experts in business think that investing in green technology is a good idea, political parties should think the same. _— There are different ways the UK could try to create something similar to the IRA, and not all of the methods would cost a lot of money.The,. r v Guardian Biden’s clean energy act paves Britain's way to post-Brexit growth. Should we copy him? Level 2: Intermediate @ Key language a, Write down the word class of each of the words below to complete the table. Use the wordpoo! to help you. adjective adjective adverb infinitive infinitive verb - continuous verb—past pluralnoun —pluralnoun singular noun ‘economy economic 1 2 invest investing investments 3 4 5 recent recently 6 7 support supported supporters 8 8 10. b. Discuss what helped you identify the word classes. ¢. Match the words to form compound nouns from the article. 4. business a. aid 2. finance b. breaks. 3. state ©. minister 4. tax 4. secretary 5. trade e. secretary d. In small groups, discuss what you think dictionary or use your phone. ch of the compound nouns means. Check in a