What the government has to do to get the economy moving again

Ministers must sit down with businesses to work out a recovery plan to stop Britain's economy falling into recession

• UK business confidence collapses as stagflation' fears grow
• Covid cases rise as UK schools return and furlough ends

The events of the past week have shown the fragility of the UK's economic recovery. The issue of labour shortages is nothing new.

Three years ago, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) quarterly economic survey for the fourth quarter of 2018 found 81% of manufacturers were experiencing difficulties in finding the right staff. At the time, this was the joint-highest level since the survey began in 1989.