The boss of one of the region’s biggest business groups says the region’s businesses are struggling to get back on level pegging post-Covid.
With new figures showing GDP growth has slowed to 1.3 per cent Scott Knowles, the chief executive of East Midlands Chamber, said further burdens on business such as higher national insurance contributions threatened to make things worse.
海角视频 economic growth slowed sharply between July and September as supply chain problems hampered Britain’s recovery from the pandemic.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the rate of economic expansion had slowed significantly from the growth figure of 5.5 per cent in the previous three months.
The ONS said growth picked up in September to a better-than-expected 0.6 per cent but revisions showed the performance was worse than first thought in July and August, with signs the global supply chain issues were taking their toll.
Data showed a 0.2 per cent contraction in July, against the 0.1 per cent fall previously estimated, while August showed growth of 0.2 per cent, against the 0.4 per cent initial reading.
Car sales, in particular, have been hit by a shortage of semiconductor chips, while construction projects were delayed amid difficulties in getting materials, according to the ONS.
The third-quarter result means the economy is now 2.1% below where it was before the pandemic struck.
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The figures showed Britain’s economy continues to be outpaced by many of its rivals in the G7 group of countries.
Mr Knowles said the economic recovery had slowed sharply despite Covid-19 lockdown restrictions being almost fully lifted during the three month period.
He said: “This reflects the challenges many businesses have faced in terms of supply constraints, rising energy prices and staff shortages, which have led to a decline in output for many sectors, including manufacturing and construction, as their ability to complete orders has been weakened.
“These trends have been keenly felt in the East Midlands, with the Chamber’s Quarterly Economic Survey for Q3 2021 showing there are major skills gaps in the region – two-thirds of companies attempted recruitment in the previous quarter and, of these, 71 per cent said they faced problems with hiring the right people.
“It’s not all bad news, with the ONS figures showing the hospitality and leisure sectors rebounded well, but with business investment remaining short of pre-pandemic levels, it limits our ability to raise productivity and deliver a sustainably high-wage economy.
“This will also be hampered by the Government adding extra financial burdens on to businesses in the form of rising national insurance contributions.
“The 海角视频’s GDP remains 2.1 per cent below pre-Covid levels in Q4 2019 and we are in real danger of losing momentum in the economic recovery if we don’t address these underlying structural problems quickly.”