Rishi Sunak’s promise to grow the economy ‘in tatters’ as UK enters technical recession – as it happened

UK economy shrank by 0.3% in October-December, worse than expected, putting country into a technical recession in a blow to the PM

• UK economy in recession as households cut spending
• Even a technical recession is a headache for Rishi Sunak

Net trade, household spending and government consumption all contracted in the final quarter of last year, helping to push the UK economy into a technical recession.

Household expenditure fell by 0.1% in real terms (adjusted for inflation) in Q4 2023, following a downwardly revised fall of 0.9% in Q3, as consumers cut back in the cost of living squeeze.