Business Insights And Impact On The Uk Economy: 9 January 2025

10th January 2025

In late December 2024, nearly three in five (59%) businesses reported that they were not concerned about the impact climate change may have on their business. This is up 3 percentage points from late September 2024 and is the highest proportion reported since the question was first introduced into the Business Insights and Conditions Survey (BICS) in September 2022.

When asked in late December 2024, 17% of businesses reported that they had taken at least one action to protect the environment, up 3 percentage points from late September 2024, but in line with late June 2024; the most commonly reported action was monitoring climate-related risks at 7%, broadly stable over the same period.

In late December 2024, more than half (51%) of businesses reported that they had taken at least one action to reduce their carbon emissions, up 3 percentage points from late September 2024; the most reported actions taken were switching to LED bulbs (34%), adjusting heating and cooling systems (24%), and installing a smart meter (15%).

Approximately one in six (16%) businesses reported that they are currently using some form of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in late December 2024, broadly stable with late September 2024; for businesses with 250 or more employees this percentage was higher at 28%, down 2 percentage points over the same period.

In late December 2024, 23% of businesses reported that they had some form of concern about their supply chains over the next 12 months, up 3 percentage points from late September 2024; the most commonly reported concern was increased barriers to trade at 11%, up 3 percentage points over the same period.

Of the 23% of businesses that reported having at least one concern about their future supply chains, 44% reported that they expect to be impacted by the increased costs of sourcing materials, up 8 percentage points from late September 2024; other impacts reported include increased transportation costs (31%) and increased labour costs (24%), up 3 and 8 percentage points, respectively, over the same period.

Read the full ONS report HERE