UK GDP: JLR hack slams brakes on economic growth
Nicholas Hyett, investment manager at Wealth Club said: “A shrinking economy is not what any chancellor wants days before a Budget. However, in this case it’s the cyberattack on Jaguar Land River that has slammed the brakes on UK economic growth, and without it economic activity would be showing a modest pick up.
The massive knock on effects of events at a single company shows how vulnerable the UK economy is at the moment. Not only are large companies at risk from increasing cyberattacks, but the economy as a whole is reliant on a few central employers whose fortunes ripple out across the entire country.
Large national champions are great – but they need to form part of a diverse economic ecosystem and today’s numbers are an excellent example of why the government should be looking hard at supporting small businesses in particular in the Budget. Small companies are any country’s economic engine, and they have the added advantage of not tripping the entire economy when things go wrong.”