“Services also grew a little with public transport and haulage, and telecommunications having strong months.

“Partially offsetting this there were notable falls across construction as the wet weather hampered many building projects.”

A recession is defined as at least two quarters in a row where the economy contracts, as it did in the second half of 2023.

However, after the January and February readings showed growth, if the whole first quarter of 2024 is to be negative then March must show a drop of 1.29 percent or more.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt commented: “These figures are a welcome sign that the economy is turning a corner, and we can build on this progress if we stick to our plan. Last week our cuts to National Insurance for 29 million working people came into effect across Britain, as part of our plan to reward work and grow the economy.”

Jeremy Batstone-Carr, European strategist at Raymond James Investment Services said the move could be putting Britain “further away” from the recession.

He said: “More evidence supports this revival. Service sector output delivered a second consecutive month of expansion, which, paired with upbeat retail sales and forward-looking business surveys, point to strengthened activity in March.