UK economy continues sideways drift with no sign of uplift

The economy is doing poorly but not poorly enough for the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee to contemplate cutting the cost of borrowing. Photograph: Yui Mok/PA

Like a sailing ship trapped in the doldrums, Britain’s economy is going nowhere. The latest official growth figures for the third quarter of 2023 show the sideways drift of the past 18 months continuing. Without population growth the performance would have been even weaker.

Clearly, higher interest rates are having an impact. The UK economy is heavily reliant on the residential housing market to propel it forwards, and that engine has been shut off as a result of the steady increase in the cost of borrowing from the Bank of England since December 2021.