Covid in Scotland: Glasgow's economy to be worst hit
- Published
Glasgow will be the Scottish city hardest hit by the economic fallout of Covid, a new report suggests.
The Demos-PwC 'Good Growth for Cities' report says Scotland's biggest city will have seen its economy shrink by 10.4% in 2020.
In contrast, Edinburgh is expected to see its economy contract by 9.1%, a less severe impact than in any other UK city.
However, the capital will be among slowest cities to recover.
The 'Good Growth for Cities' index ranks 42 of the UK's largest cities based on ten economic factors such as jobs, income levels and skills.
Out of the three Scottish cities in the UK rankings, Edinburgh is in fifth position, followed by Aberdeen in seventh while Glasgow is ranked 24th out of the 42 cities.
The report found that cities hardest hit by the pandemic are likely to make the fastest economic recovery, but are still expected to be worse off than at the beginning of the pandemic compared to more resilient places.
Edinburgh was the fifth most Covid resilient city economy in the Demos-PwC report of 42 UK cities
Stewart Wilson, of PwC Scotland, said: "This year's survey shows that Edinburgh - thanks in part to its broad spread of economic sectors - has been less impacted economically than other cities.
"However, in line with the rest of the UK where cities hardest hit will be quickest to recover, it seems Glasgow will be quickest to emerge.
"The pandemic has shone a spotlight on existing economic and social inequalities. This reinforces the view that when the post-pandemic recovery begins in earnest, we must look beyond GDP and focus our collective efforts on tackling issues that really matter to the public."
- Published15 December 2020
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