Official figures revealed the UK economy showed zero growth between July and September.
Andrew Neil delivered a scathing review of Labour’s performance (Image: Getty)
Andrew Neil has delivered a scathing verdict of Labour’s performance after official figures revealed the UK economy showed zero growth between July and September.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the challenge to fix the economy “after 15 years of neglect is huge”, but Neil believes Labour has made inherited problems worse.
When looking to Q4, he said “the Budget has put the kibosh on that”, following a similar theme to a CBI survey which revealed businesses expect a challenging upcoming quarter.
Posting on X, the veteran broadcaster said: “Labour was too busy talking the economy down to take any economic measures in Q3, with consequences we can all see.
“As for Q4, well the Budget has put the kibosh on that. Quite an achievement to inherit a host of economic problems – and make them worse. Impressive.”
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Today’s revised figures showed zero growth compared to 0.7% in the first quarter, and 0.4% in the second quarter – a blow to Labour which promised to deliver the highest sustained economic growth in the G7 group of rich nations.
Businesses warned the rise in employer national insurance contributions (NICs) and a higher minimum wage could push them into cutting jobs and ra ising prices.
Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride said today’s figures showed “growth has tanked on Labour’s watch”, adding “the warning lights are flashing” on the outlook for the economy in 2025.
Leading business group the CBI warned its latest company survey suggested “the economy is headed for the worst of all worlds”.
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The CBI, which claims to represent 170,000 firms, conducted a survey based on responses of 899 firms between November 25 and December 12.
It found private sector businesses across all industries expected a “steep decline in activity” in the first three months in 2025.
The survey comes after inflation hit 2.6% in the year to November, the fastest pace since March, according to official figures.
