The economy faces a hit of £250 million a day from a second wave of Covid-19 infections if partial lockdowns reverse the increase in people going to pubs and restaurants and returning to work, according to a new report.
The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), a think-tank, warned that GDP could fall by between 3 per cent and 5 per cent in the last three months of the year compared with the third quarter. Douglas McWilliams, the CEBR’s deputy chairman, said that a second national lockdown could “knock the stuffing out of consumer and business confidence”, with an impact on investment, business closures and jobs.
According to the CEBR, 10pm curfews, which have been imposed in some areas, are also a risk to the economy, particularly in leisure and entertainment. It said that there would be “a potential £2 billion annual cost if curfew measures reach London”.