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Pandemic plunges U.K. into "largest recession on record"

12 August 2020
Dan Ackermann

The United Kingdom slumped into recession as its gross domestic product GDP shrank 20.4% compared with the first three months of the year, the Office of National Statistics (ONS) confirmed Wednesday.

Why it matters: Per an ONS statement, "It is clear that the U.K. is in the largest recession on record." The U.K. has faired worse than any other major European economy from coronavirus lockdowns, Bloomberg notes. And finance minister Rishi Sunak warns the situation is likely to worsen.

Our latest GDP estimates for June show that the UK economy is now 17.2% smaller than it was in February before the full impacts of the #coronavirus#COVID19 pandemic hit https://t.co/8FmcVvX6lzpic.twitter.com/Qgh12prPtt

— Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) August 12, 2020
  • "I've said before that hard times were ahead, and today's figures confirm that hard times are here," he said in a statement.
  • "Hundreds of thousands of people have already lost their jobs, and sadly in the coming months many more will."

Of note: It's the first time the U.K. has been in recession since 2009, as the country was impacted by the global financial crisis.

Driving the news: Jonathan Athow, the ONS deputy national statistician in economic statistics, said in a statement, "The recession brought on by the coronavirus pandemic has led to the biggest fall in quarterly GDP on record."

  • Athow said the U.K. economy "began to bounce back in June with shops reopening, factories beginning to ramp up production and housebuilding continuing to recover."
  • However, GDP in June remained one sixth below its level in February, "before the virus struck," he noted.
"Overall, productivity saw its largest fall in the second quarter since the three-day week. Hospitality was worst hit, with productivity in that industry falling by three quarters in recent months."

By the numbers: More than 313,400 people have tested positive for the virus and over 46,600 have died, per Johns Hopkins.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.