More than half of employers in the UK are planning to cut jobs in an attempt to survive the credit crunch, according to a new survey.

Research conducted by KPMG reveals that 60 per cent of managers are looking to cut costs as the economy slows and 53 per cent see shedding jobs as a way to do this.

Malcolm Edge, regional chairman for KPMG in the north, believes that the report highlights a worsening situation.

He said: "With six out of ten businesses looking to cut costs, staff redundancies may seem like the obvious, albeit painful, solution.

"The widespread redundancy programmes we have already seen in the financial services and house building sectors may therefore just be a small sign of things to come."

With 80 per cent of firms which took part in the survey being based outside of London, it appears that credit crunch is now impacting on regional businesses, he added.

Last week, Richard Dodd, spokesperson for the British Retail Consortium, predicted that the UK economy will avoid a recession, but stated that there are tough times ahead.

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