London business confidence ticks up in first quarter of 2021
Business confidence in London improved during the first three months of 2021, after reaching its lowest point since the 2008 global financial crisis.
A new survey by Savanta ComRes/the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry has revealed that 29 per cent of business leaders in the first quarter of 2021 said London’s economic prospects will improve over the coming year – a 9 per cent rise from quarter four 2020.
The number of business leaders saying London’s prospects will worsen in 2021 dropped from 60 per cent to 45 per cent in quarter one.
It comes as the UK’s vaccine rollout has become the quickest of any major economy in the world and with retail and hospitality, for outdoor customers, set to reopen in England mid-April.
A new survey by City Pantry also showed one-third of UK businesses are set to go back into the office from next month in some capacity.
London Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Richard Burge said: “Despite the implications of Covid-19, and Brexit, on the performance of many businesses, confidence in the London and UK economy has risen during Q1 2021 – albeit from a low base rate and still in negative territory.
“As we move along the road to reopening and recovery, the vaccination programme must continue to reach as many people as possible, and national and London government must put their full support behind the role that London, and its global economy, can play in driving the UK’s economic recovery from Covid-19.”
London’s economy has been adversely affected by Covid-19, with the capital’s unemployment rate now two per cent higher than the national rate.
This has been particularly felt in central London, with Covid restrictions leading to a sustained drop in footfall and an almost complete halt to much of the capital’s theatre sector.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said at a campaign event that central London’s arts and culture industries were vital to the success of other sectors, particularly in Canada.
“If you want a national recovery, you must have a London recovery – by not investing in London you’re doing damage to the national economy,” he said.
“The good news is that so far we’ve not seen big jobs [from Canada] leaving our city [post-Brexit], the reason I’m so keen to have a good recovery in central London is because I know when I speak to the City, one the reasons they chose London over Frankfurt, Madrid, Brussels is because of our ecosystem – culture, theatre, museums, libraries.”