One in three expects tough times

One third of Brits expect their financial position to worsen over the next 12 months as the impact of the credit crunch begins to take hold.

A survey by Harris Interactive and the Financial Times found that the crisis had so far had no impact on the lives of 44% of respondents but 36% are pessimistic about how it will affect their finances over the coming year.

The biggest problem facing the UK economy was seen as rising food and energy prices, cited by 40% of respondents.

Over two-thirds of British adults said they had no confidence in the government's ability to deal with the current economic conditions, the survey added.