Alistair Darling holds up the red briefcase containing the 2009 budget
By Leon Neal
Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling holds up the red briefcase containing the 2009 budget report outside 11 Downing Street in London. The British economy will shrink this year at the fastest rate since 1945 and suffer sky-high public debt as a result of the global financial crisis, Darling forecast Wednesday.