UK productivity is lagging other leading economies by the most since 1992
The UK may have finally see some signs of productivity improvements yesterday, but the economy is still mired in what must now be called a productivity crisis.
The latest estimates from the Office for National Statistics show that the gap between the UK's productivity and that of other leading countries is now at its widest since 1992.
In 2012 output per hour in the UK was 21 percentage points below the average in for the rest of the major G7 industrialised economies. And UK productivity fell from 2011 to 2012.
Comparing 2012 with 2011, the gap between output work in the UK and rest of the G7 widened by one percentage point. And the UK's lead over Japan is at its narrowest since 1997.
USA, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada were all more productive than the UK in 2012.
Source: ONS