This is the second fall after GDP shrank by 0.3 per cent at the end of 2011.

The reason for the fall was put down to a decrease in output in the production and construction industry.

Production output decreased by 0.4 per cent while construction decreased by 3.0 per cent. Both of these similarly fell in the previous quarter.

Business services and finance also contributed to the decrease with a fall of 0.1 per cent in Q1. Financial services made the largest negative contribution within the sector.

Mining, quarrying and manufacturing sectors were most affected by the decrease in production industry.

Output in the service industry grew by 0.1 per cent following a decrease of 0.1 per cent in the previous quarter.

The figures will be revised again in May, this primarily affects the construction figures for which March data is low.

The ONS said March figures would need to be exceptionally strong in order to produce growth for the quarter.

If March figures remained the same as previous years, it would create an estimation of 4.0 per cent decrease but if the figures were lower than previous year, figures could be as low as five or six per cent.

A second estimate of these figures will be given on 24 May.