UK economy slows sharply ahead of election

Construction  contracted by 1.6 per cent in the first quarter, the ONS said
Construction contracted by 1.6 per cent in the first quarter, the ONS said
CARL COURT/GETTY IMAGES

Britain started the year with the weakest economic growth since the country was mired in fears of a triple-dip recession, dealing the Conservatives a damaging blow just nine days before the general election.

The economy expanded by just 0.3 per cent in the three months to March, its slowest growth since the 0.3 per cent contraction at the end of 2012. The figures, from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), were half the previous quarter’s 0.6 per cent growth and worse than expected. Economists polled by Reuters were forecasting 0.5 per cent on average.

Statisticians cautioned against reading too much into one set of data, especially the first GDP estimate for which only 40 per cent of the hard data has been collected. However, the