The UK economy grew by 6.6% in July, according to official figures, but output remains far below pre-pandemic levels.

It is the third month in a row that the economy has expanded.

But the Office for National Statistics (ONS), said that the UK "has still only recovered just over half of the lost output caused by the coronavirus".

Hairdressers, pubs and restaurants contributed to growth after companies were allowed to reopen in July.

However, the UK's economy is still 11.7% smaller than it was in February and growth in July was smaller than the 8.7% expansion seen in June.

Thomas Pugh, UK economist at Capital Economics, said the reopening of restaurants and pubs meant the accommodation and food services sector "rose by a whopping 140.8%" between June and July.

Dean Turner, economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, forecast that it will take until the end of 2021 before the UK recovers to pre-pandemic levels.

"Even with a managed exit from the Brexit transition agreement, it is unlikely that the lost output would be recovered before the end of next year, he said.

"The latest twist in negotiations raises the prospect that any recovery may take longer."

Meanwhile, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is due to end on 31 October.

Former prime minister Gordon Brown, warned that ending the furlough scheme was a "cliff-edge" that could trigger "a tsunami of unemployment".

"The government's got to change course here," he told the BBC's Today programme.

Mr Brown called on the government to introduce a short-time working scheme, such as those in France and Germany. This would allow firms to reduce employees' working hours while keeping them in jobs, with the state topping up their salaries.

"You have got to send a signal that unemployment matters," he said. "We don't want to destroy any more capacity and skills in the economy."