in 2009 we said goodbye to harry patch, the last survivor of the generation of soldiers who risked their lives for britain in the great war.as we mourned him, we remembered too all those who have laid down their lives in the defence of this country we love.
last year was particularly tough for our forces in afghanistan, and we face some more difficult months ahead.in late december we were reminded at this decade’s end, just as we were at its beginning, that there is a terrorist threat which puts our safety and security at risk and which requires us to take on al qaeda and the taliban at the epicentre of global terrorismthose who think things can never change, and those who believe they have to.and i think the vast majority of people are in the second camp.we are a nation that looks to the future, combining responsibility with fairne, compaion with aspirationa crisis that hit britain hard because the financial sector is such an important part of our economy.but this is a nation of fighters and believer
s who meet each challenge with strength and sacrifice.we fought back against receion because we stood together and did not leave people isolated to face a difficult future on their own.
britain has learnt the bitter leons of previous receionsand if the experience of the last receion had been repeated, people’s chances of having a job would have been four times worse after they became unemployed, repoeions twice as bad and company insolvencies two and a half times worse.
the decisions taken by alistair darling and all the ministers of this government have meant that we have already seen off the worst of the receion.there is no denying it has been painful for somemore than at any point since records of this began in the 1980s, and fewer businees closed in 2009 than in 2008.
and i am confident that if we continue with the tough decisions we have made, unemployment will start to drop this year, and more small businees will open and flourish.
that wasn’t inevitable; it was the change we chose.and so my meage today is simple; don’t wreck the recovery.the recovery is still fragile, and it needs to be nurtured in the interests of those who were hit hardest by the receionthey simply want a bit of help to own their own home, set up their own businees and give their children the best start in life.
because everyone who is willing to work hard and aim high deserves a fair shot at meeting their aspirations.my whole life in politics has been about trying to provide a ladder of opportunity, so that what matters is not where you come from but what you have to contribute.and that is the vision that will guide this government in the tough decisions ahead.
so let me talk to you about my key priorities for the coming yearand people with such high aspirationsand it is this strategy that means we are also able to cooperate with president obama on non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, and with our european neighbours and others on defeating catastrophic climate change.
so those are my priorities.my belief is that this is going to be a great decade for a great nation.if we continue to make the right decisions to unleash all the talent that is to be found in these islands, we have much to look forward to - and you and your families have my warm best wishes for the year ahead.
