A DISTRICT council-run business support group relaunched its in-person meetings with a bacon roll and chat with East Hampshire MP Damian Hinds.

Business East Hants (BEH) is a networking group and the get-together at 8am last Friday came almost exactly 24 hours after the MP resigned from prime minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet.

And in the wake of his resignation over the PM’s behaviour, Mr Hinds, although bullish about the long-term economic outlook, was more cautionary about the immediate future.

He told the audience at Old Thorns that “right now” things were very tough.

He said: “UK growth is predicted to be zero over the coming year.

“And right now it’s very tough in the economy locally as well as nationally.”

He went on to say the reasons for stagnant economy were world events such as the Covid pandemic and the Ukraine war.

However, despite opinions earlier aired by attendees that Brexit still wasn’t “done”, as had been promised by its architect Mr Johnson, and was still hugely to blame for the state of the economy, Mr Hinds noticeably avoided mentioning it in his opening speech.

But he did raise the issue of housing in East Hampshire.

He said: “There aren’t any really big businesses based here – what we have is a lot of small- and medium-sized ones spread across a broad spectrum of sectors, such hospitality, tourism and agri-businesses.

“This is a great place to live and work, and now a lot of people work from home, or locally, we need to make sure there are houses for people of all incomes to buy in places like Petersfield, Alton and Bordon.”

But on a positive note, he said he believed the current standstill of the economy – recession wasn’t mentioned – would be relatively short-lived.

He added: “The issues affecting the economy are global, there are no fundamental issues with the UK economy and things should return to normal.”

His message was reinforced by district council leader Richard Millard who said the council would, to the best of its ability, help local businesses navigate the current economic climate.

Cllr Millard said: “It’s great to see Business East Hants return to face-to-face meetings. Your input is vital, and Business East Hants can provide a direct conduit from you to the council.

“Work with us, and we will work with you, and together we can make the local economy stronger.”