The number of new businesses in London fell by 5.9% in the first half of 2026, a steeper fall than across the UK as a whole, according to Office for National Statistics figures.
The ONS recorded 34,745 business births in London between January and June 2026, against 36,910 in the same six months of 2025. Across the UK, business births fell by 3.1%, from 163,075 to 157,980.
Business deaths in London rose to 33,905 in the first half of 2026, from 32,900 a year earlier, so births still outnumbered closures by 840.
The boroughs
The biggest falls were in Greenwich, where business births dropped by 25.4% from 965 to 720, and Westminster, down 21.4% from 3,380 to 2,655. Westminster still had more business births than any other borough.
Lambeth fell by 13.1%, from 1,065 to 925, and Camden and Kensington and Chelsea each by 13.0%, Camden from 1,805 to 1,570 and Kensington and Chelsea from 885 to 770. The City of London fell by 9.5%, from 1,000 to 905.
Nine of the 33 council areas recorded more business births than a year earlier. Brent rose the most, by 6.1% from 1,145 to 1,215, followed by Sutton, up 4.2% from 480 to 500, and Barking and Dagenham, up 3.9% from 765 to 795. Kingston upon Thames, Hounslow and Haringey were unchanged.
The national ranking
The national fall was highlighted by the online accountancy firm eAccounts in research published on 15 October 2026, which ranked UK council areas by growth in new businesses using the same ONS figures. No London borough made its top 10. Harlow came first with a rise of 25.0%, from 260 to 325, followed by Southampton (20.7%) and Mid Ulster (19.2%).
Kris Corbisiero, founder of eAccounts, said: “The traditional assumption has been that new businesses gravitate towards the biggest commercial centres. Digital platforms, cloud-based business tools and remote working have weakened that connection.”
How the figures work
The figures come from the ONS quarterly business demography statistics, which the ONS publishes as experimental statistics. The latest edition, covering April to June 2026, was released on 30 July 2026. A business birth or death is an enterprise joining or leaving the Inter-Departmental Business Register, mainly through VAT and PAYE registrations. The ONS rounds the counts to multiples of five and they may be revised. More is in our companies section.