The UK economy grew by 2.3% in April, which is the fastest monthly growth since July 2020.

The loosening of Covid restrictions fuelled the economic expansion, due to the reopening of the retail and hospitality sectors during the month.

The rate is slightly faster than expected, and follows robust growth of 2.1% in March.

The Office for National Statistics says the service sector grew by 3.4% in April 2021, with consumer-facing services re-opening in line with the easing of coronavirus restrictions and more pupils returning to onsite lessons.

Output in the production sector fell by 1.3% in April 2021, the first fall since January 2021 as three of the four sectors contracted.

Within production, mining and quarrying output contracted sharply, by 15.0%, in April 2021 because of planned temporary closures for maintenance of oil field production sites.

The construction sector contracted by 2.0% in April 2021 following a strong March, with new work slowing down faster than repair and maintenance.

The UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak says: “Today’s figures are a promising sign that our economy is beginning to recover.

“With more than a million people coming off furlough across March and April and the number of employees in work rising, it is clear that our Plan for Jobs is working.

“But I know there are people who still need our support, which is why the furlough scheme is in place until September to protect as many jobs as possible, and schemes like Kickstart will continue to create jobs for young people, as we look to build the economy of the future.”