UK 'keeps spending taps open' to fight Covid-driven deep slump      

World’s sixth-biggest economy  set to shrink by 11.3% in 2020 before growing by 5.5% in 2021

UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak will spend a further £55bn (€61.8bn) in fighting the health and economic costs of Covid.  File picture: Yui Mok

UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak is "keeping the spending taps open" during the Covid-19 crisis but the worst mistake he could make is to pull back from the spending spree too soon, a senior economist has said. 

Mr Sunak will spend a further £55bn (€61.8bn) to add to the £280bn (€313.9bn), equivalent to 14.5% of Britain's GDP, already committed in the financial year to fighting the health and economic costs of Covid, said Ruth Gregory, senior UK economist, at Capital Economics.