Unemployment to peak at 5.8 per cent as jobs market faces ‘biggest hit’ since pandemic

Britain is set to be “pushed to the brink of a technical recession” in the coming year as the economic fallout of the war in Iran dampens growth prospects and sends unemployment soaring.

The latest Item Club report sees the UK economy flatlining in the second and third quarters as it digests the consequences of the conflict in the Middle East. This is forecast to tee the UK up for 0.7 per cent growth in 2026 – a mere half of the 1.4 per cent notched the previous year.