Hopes that a “dynamic movement” among small firms could solve the UK’s prolonged productivity crisis have been dashed after business owners said it was not a priority.

Just 7pc plan to make it a priority next year, with SMEs citing the state of the UK economy as a much greater concern.

Four times as many businesses are worried about a possible slowdown as a worry, a survey of more than 1,000 businesses by HSBC has shown.

It comes after productivity growth was revised down by the Office for Budget Responsibility for the seventh year in a row.

Sluggish output has resulted in poor growth forecasts, and led to fears that the productivity crisis could result in lower wages for several years.