North behind UK in all economic indicators

The North is slipping behind the rest of the UK in just about every measure of employment, growth, and productivity, a study has revealed.

Business confidence is lower than anywhere else in the 12 UK regions, with the second highest level of unemployment and long-term unemployment almost double the national average.

The Northern Ireland Economic Outlook, published by PwC, also claimed that forecast growth in the region during 2013 is now the lowest at 0.4%, with unemployment expected to rise during the year.