The Conservatives have today been blamed for taking the UK to the brink of recession as a result of the party's "disastrous economic policies".
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt warned of a "tough road ahead" for the UK as gross domestic product, the measure of national income known as GDP, contracted by 0.2 per cent.
The Tory minister will announce his autumn budget next week where he is expected to announce painful public spending cuts and tax hikes.
The economic figure for between July and September could mark the start of a recession, which is defined as two three-month periods of economic contraction in a row.
The Bank of England previously warned the UK is facing its longest recession since records began - with the economic downturn expected to extend well into 2024.
Labour and the SNP accused the Conservatives of leaving the economy exposed to the international economic shocks by leading the country through a decade of weak growth and inequality.
Alison Thewlis, SNP Treasury spokeswoman, said: "These latest figures must serve as a final wake-up call for the Prime Minister and his Chancellor to deliver real support to protect struggling households and businesses, and ditch their austerity agenda.
"With a long and deep recession looming, the grim reality is that far too many people are frightened to open their bills, and are unable to put food on the table or heat their homes.
"These statistics are a damning indictment of the Tories’ disastrous economic record - driven by deep austerity, targeting of the most vulnerable in society, and imposing an extreme Brexit that has hammered the economy, trade and led to staff shortages."
Hunt insisted the problems were largely due to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s "weaponisation" of gas supplies during his war in Ukraine.
"I am under no illusion that there is a tough road ahead – one which will require extremely difficult decisions to restore confidence and economic stability,” the Chancellor said.
"But to achieve long-term sustainable growth, we need to grip inflation, balance the books and get debt falling. There is no other way.
"While the world economy faces extreme turbulence, the fundamental resilience of the British economy is cause for optimism in the long run."
Labour’s shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said: "Today’s numbers are another page of failure in the Tories’ record on growth.
"And the reality of this failure is family finances crunched, British businesses left behind and more anxiety for the future.
"Britain’s unique exposure to economic shocks has been down to a Conservative-led decade of weak growth, low productivity and underinvestment and widening inequality.
"We’re already set to be near the bottom of global league tables on growth, but all the Tories offer yet again is austerity.
"Britain has so much potential to grow. We have the talent. We have the capacity. Labour’s Green Prosperity Plan, our modern Industrial Strategy, our plan to boost skills and our active partnership with business, will get our economy firing on all cylinders."
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