Yorkshire businesses show signs of growing pressure as value of debt owed rises to £4.5m

Research from insolvency and restructuring trade body R3, which is based on an analysis of data provided by CreditSafe, showed that although the number of businesses going into liquidation with debt in the last month has fallen from 271 to 201 in the region, the total debt they owe rose from a total of £1.5m in May to £4.5m in June.

Eleanor Temple, chairwoman of R3 in Yorkshire, said: “While the UK economy unexpectedly returned to slight growth in GDP in May after a decline in April, the outlook is still very uncertain for businesses in Yorkshire across the UK as it’s yet to be seen whether that growth can be sustained and a recession can be avoided.

“The surprise growth in GDP in May appears to have been largely driven by a boom in holiday bookings and a big rise in GP appointments, however, the figures already revealed a worrying decline in consumer-facing services with falling retail sales and a slump in sports activities and recreation.

“Unfortunately, these early signs of the impact of the high cost of living squeezing disposable income are set to continue as households struggle to cope with hikes in energy costs over the winter.”