EY said that the economy would shrink by 13 per cent in the second quarter of the year

Britain’s economy will suffer a deep, short recession and it will then take three years just to get back to 2019 levels of output, according to a report.

Economic growth could fall by 6.8 per cent this year before rebounding to positive growth of 4.5 per cent, according to the EY Item Club. Although business activity will begin to recover after the lockdown is lifted, the economy will not return to the size it was in late 2019 until 2023, the forecasting group said.

Rising unemployment and weak confidence mean that consumer spending will contract by 7.5 per cent this year, while business investment could fall by 13.6 per cent. Both are expected to rebound next year by 4.9 per cent and 1.2 per cent