Business, Freight News, Logistics


Economy needs resilience, says Logistics UK chief

[ June 16, 2026   //   ]

Logistics UK chief executive Ben Fletcher is pressing for greater resilience to be built into the economy to ensure goods can keep moving during periods of volatility. It follows publication of the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics which show that, despite modest growth in the economy during the first quarter of 2026, the Middle East conflict contracted the economy by 0.1% in April.

He said: “The Middle East conflict is a stark reminder that it is impossible to predict the future: our members are certain that building resilience into the economy is the only way to manage the impact of similar unforeseen events. The increased business confidence we saw at the beginning of the year was beginning to deliver growth, yet the sudden economic volatility caused by the Middle East conflict effectively put a hand brake on this and April saw the economy contract by 0.1%.

“Reports that the conflict could soon be over will be welcomed across the globe, but it will be months before supply chains are operating as they were pre-conflict, with vessels out of position and contracts on hold, as well as the rise in fuel prices. Cost pressures are still increasing which is why the postponement of the rise in fuel duty, a 12-month road tax holiday for HGVs and a reduction in the red diesel duty rate for rail freight announced last month remain significant decisions for the logistics sector and something which our members would like to see remain in place.

“These decisions show the government is listening to our industry’s concerns but to continue to build resilience into the economy and bolster the increase in confidence that we saw at the beginning of the year, what the industry now needs is an urgent package of ongoing support. Additional measures on fuel duty – including scrapping plans to automatically uprate fuel duty by RPI; low carbon fuel; electricity costs and business rates are critical and will ensure businesses can invest for the future while keeping our hospitals stocked with medicines, our shops with food and our homes with access to the goods we rely on every day.”

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