Last year, the UK economy experienced the largest downturn in more than three decades, with GDP declining by almost 10% over the course of 2020.

That ensures that in the last 7 years, the Covid-19 pandemic has essentially wiped out all growth in the United Kingdom, dragging the economy down to the scale it was in 2013.
According to a Bank of England database, the 9.9 percent fall in UK GDP was less serious than expected but exceeded the 9.7 percent crash recorded during the Great Depression in 1921, making it the worst annual decline since 1709. That was when the harshest winter in Europe caused widespread death and devastation in 500 years.
It's a pandemic to blame this time, whereas back then, it was the Great Freeze that saw ice in the North Sea, and the War of the Spanish Succession... that did the harm, "This time it's a pandemic to blame whereas back then, it was a Great Frost, which saw ice in the North Sea, and the War of Spanish Succession ... which was doing the damage,"
In the final months of 2020, there were some signs of change, with GDP projected to have risen by 1% in the fourth quarter, following record growth in the third quarter, according to the Office of National Statistics.
But between October and December, there were significant production fluctuations, mainly tracking the extent of constraints placed to suppress the coronavirus.
Of the big economies, the United Kingdom experienced one of the worst recessions last year. In the pandemic, for example, Germany kept up well than it did during the global financial crisis. Provisional figures show that the largest economy in Europe contracted by 5 percent last year. According to Eurostat, EU GDP, however, is estimated to have fallen 6.4 percent.
In contrast, the United States did much better, with GDP falling 3.5 percent from the previous year.
Finally, Brexit is over. That is likely to make the UK poorer.
"Today's figures show that the economy has experienced a serious shock as a result of the pandemic, which has been felt by countries around the world," UK finance minister Rishi Sunak said in a statement. "While there are some positive signs of the economy's resilience over the winter, we know that the current lockdown continues to have a significant impact on many people and businesses."
In the first quarter of 2021, the latest national lockout in the United Kingdom, introduced on 5 January, is projected to strike the economy hard, reversing the return to growth in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Sam Miley, an economist at the London-based Centre for Economics and Market Analysis, said in a note on Friday: "It seems that a double-dip [recession] was merely delayed rather than avoided outright,"
The EU-UK trade turmoil after the conclusion of the Brexit implementation phase on 31 December is also weighing on activity.
According to a report released on Thursday by the Financial Conduct Regulator, the pandemic has left more than a quarter of British adults financially vulnerable, with too much debt or not enough savings to deal with a' negative life case' such as redundancy, lack of working hours, or ill health (FCA).
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