Britain's economy contracted in April as the Middle East war hit growth, official data showed Friday, dealing a setback to Prime Minister Keir Starmer as he grapples with a fresh political crisis.
Gross domestic product fell 0.1 percent in April following growth of 0.3 percent in March, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement.
Surging energy prices triggered by the war, which began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, have reignited inflationary pressures and threatened to derail growth.
"Before the conflict in the Middle East, growth was higher than expected and inflation was falling," finance minister Rachel Reeves said in response to the figures.
"This is not a war we wanted or joined, but one that will have an impact at home," she said.
Britain's defense and armed forces ministers quit Thursday in a row over military spending, piling pressure on Starmer who is facing calls to step down.
Defense Secretary John Healey resigned warning that Starmer's long-awaited Defense Investment Plan (DIP) for funding over the next decade -- which the leader has yet to publish -- risked making Britain "less safe.”
In the evening Al Carns became the second senior figure in defense to quit, resigning as armed forces minister, along with Healey aide Pamela Nash.
The resignations weaken Starmer's authority at a precarious moment, a week before a by-election that could prompt a bid to replace him.
