Double-dip recession longest since 1955.

New figures have revealed that the economy shrank by more than had been expected in the second quarter of 2012, making this Britain's longest double-dip recession in over 50 years.

Between April and June, Britain's gross domestic product (GDP) slumped by 0.7%, marking the third quarterly fall in a row, data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows.

GDP - a broad measure for the state of the economy - had been expected to fall by only 0.2%, so the figures have come as a shock to forecasters.

An extra bank holiday for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and the wettest April to June period on record appear to have contributed to the dire performance. It was the biggest quarterly fall since the depths of the financial crisis in the first quarter of 2009.

This latest figures released by the ONS represent its first estimates, so they may be subject to revision. If the estimate is accurate, however, it would make this the UK's longest double-dip recession since quarterly records began in 1955.

Copyright Press Association 2012