It’s official.. we are in the worst dip since 2008

ONS figures confirm economic meltdown and Chancellor warns of more jobs losses in future

BRITAIN officially became the sick man of Europe again yesterday when the UK crashed into the deepest recession of any major economy as a result of the devastating economic effects of the coronavirus lockdown.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirmed the UK’s pandemic nosedive sent the economy plunging by a record 20.4 per cent between April and June – the deepest since records began – with hospitality singled out as the worst-hit industry.

It was the worst drop in gross domestic product (GDP) since the 2008 banking crisis and exceeded the 18.5 per cent recorded in Spain, the worst-performing country in the EU.

The figures come just a day after confirmation that nearly one million jobs have been lost already during lockdown and heralded the loss of about 550 jobs at RBS and NatWest branches.

Labour described the figures as a “tragedy for Britain” and Chancellor Rishi Sunak issued a stark warning that “many more” will lose their jobs as firms soon have to pay towards furloughed workers’ wages before the scheme ends in October.

Sunak is now reported to be considering a delay to his Autumn Budget over fears of a second wave of coronavirus infections.

The Budget – usually delivered in November – will be a defining moment for the Government’s response to the Covid crisis amid calls from the SNP and Labour for furlough to be extended.

The bleak economic figures came the day after the Government reported the highest daily Covid-19 cases in the UK – 1148 new cases overall – since June 21.

Sunak gave a Dickensian warning of “hard times ahead” as he reacted to the economic data from the ONS.

His statement read: “I’ve said before that hard times were ahead and today’s figures confirm that hard times are here.

BY TORCUIL CRICHTON Hundreds of thousands of people have already lost their jobs and sadly in the coming months many more will.

“But while there are difficult choices to be made ahead, we will get through this and I can assure people that nobody will be left without hope or opportunity.”

Anneliese Dodds, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, issued a furious critique of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s handling of the crisis. She tweeted: “We’ve already got the worst excess death rate in Europe – now we’re on course for the worst recession, too.”

Alison Thewliss, the SNP’s Treasury spokeswoman, called for a package of measures including a furlough extension.

She said: “This makes it more baffling still that the Chancellor wants to end the furlough scheme prematurely, effectively pulling the rug out from under businesses and employees.

“Companies and trade associations are telling me that many businesses are struggling to pay their bills and are likely to have to make staff redundant if support is cut off as planned in October. The UK Government cannot continue to ignore these warnings.”

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “The best way to get our economy back on its feet is to keep people in work. The more jobs we protect, the faster we’ll recover from this crisis. That means extending the job retention scheme for companies that have a viable future but need support beyond October.”

A recession is defined as two successive quarters of decline in GDP, which has not been seen in the UK since 2008 and 2009.

It comes after ONS data showed about 730,000 UK workers have been removed from the payrolls of British companies since March.

Employment also dropped by the highest amount in a quarter since 2009 between May and June.