Low oil prices and benign inflation will provide a platform for stronger than expected UK growth in 2015, according to the first forecast of the year by the CBI.

The CBI is one of the UK’s foremost business groups and some of the country’s biggest businesses are members.

Economists at the group said UK growth would top out at 2.7% this year; up from a forecast of 2.5% made in November.

They said job creation is continuing at a fast pace and salaries are also starting to notch up as businesses gain confidence about trading conditions.

They also said low inflation meant the Bank of England would not have to raise interest rates until the first part of next year at the earliest.

This would help growth to hit 2.6% in 2016, they added.

But a cloud to the silver lining was uncertainty caused by the pending UK election and stuttering growth in Europe, according to CBI director of economics Rain Newton-Smith.

“The UK is in good shape compared with other economies, with both investment and household spending underpinning economic growth,” she said. “But there are still risks to exports from a shaky Eurozone.

“With finance ministers from across the bloc meeting today, it is vital that they reach a new deal on the bailout programme for Greece to give businesses the certainty they crave around prospects in the Eurozone.

She added: “Sterling’s recent high against the Euro also adds to the challenges for manufacturing securing further export orders.”

The general election takes place in May and analysts say it will be one of the closest results on record.

A Tory victory would mean an ‘in-out’ referendum on membership of the European Union, while Labour has promised to invest in public services, potentially at the expense of the public purse.