Anneliese Dodds MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, reacting to the latest regional GDP statistics, said:

“These figures confirm what we already know: the pandemic, and the Government’s handling of it, is worsening regional inequality.

“We need a responsible approach to secure our economy and bring jobs to every village, town and city.

“Instead, the Chancellor is hitting families with a triple hammer blow of cuts to Universal Credit, a massive hike in council tax and a pay freeze for millions of key workers. It’s economically illiterate.”