Figures confirm continued recession

26/11/2009

The recession continued over July-September 2009 - but the downturn was not as bad as had been feared.

According to new official data from the Office for National Statistics, the UK economy shrank by 0.3 per cent, not by the 0.4 per cent that had been previously reported.

However, the figures confirm that Britain has officially been in recession for the past year and a half - and that the UK is the only one of the world's biggest economies still to be shrinking.

Money problems up and down the country have worsened as a result of the downturn, with unemployment rising and card, loan and mortgage repayments coming under pressure.

Kevin Still, EuroDebt director, said: "There seem to be daily media stories regarding the state of the economy indicating we are coming out of recession when the hard evidence suggests otherwise. We are seeing more people with unmanageable debts and the corporate and personal insolvency quarterly figures make depressing reading. Company failures are having a huge impact all the way through the supply chain, creating job losses and reductions in income for millions of people."

He added: "Consumers will remain vulnerable for some considerable time, especially with increases in interest rates by credit and store card companies. EuroDebt are continuing to see disposable income squeezed. It is interesting that the average monthly contribution to an IVA is now just over £300 from over £450 in 2007. In the same period the average level of debt for an IVA case has risen from just over £45,000 to over £54,000."

Tags; Current UK Economy, Young Family Finances, Retirement Money Problems, Credit Card Lifestyle, Recent Graduate Debt,

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