The lower than expected growth of 0.3% in the first quarter of 2015 is a blow to Conservative claims that their policies have stewarded the economy into a recovery.
The rate of economic growth continues to slow in the UK, official figures from the the Office of National Statistics (ONS) shows.
Financial markets react badly to uncertainty, but Prime Minister David Cameron maintains that the Tory pledge for a 2017 in/out referendum on the EU will not harm the UK’s economy despite warnings from business leaders.
The new Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said that he would not consider raising interest rates until the number of people unemployed in the UK falls below 7%.
The UK will avoid falling back into a triple-dip recession, with signs of growth starting to appear according to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).