Frozen tax thresholds to hold back Brits for ten miserable years September 23, 2026 In March 2021 Chancellor Rishi Sunak described it as “a tax policy that is progressive and fair.” In November 2022, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt extended the policy, describing it as necessary and fair. In October 2024, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced an end to the policy, saying extending it beyond 2028 “would hurt working people.” Alas, a [...]
Reeves’ ‘ambitious’ £14bn savings plan leaves Healey with a Budget headache September 23, 2026 Cost saving measures pencilled in by the last government have dramatically reduced Chancellor John Healey’s ability to look for spending cuts and efficiency gains at his first Budget, economists have warned, raising the prospect of fresh tax hikes. Healey is under pressure to rebuild his £23.6bn fiscal buffer, which is predicted to shrink due to [...]
Reform-linked think tank calls for sweeping City deregulation and tax cuts September 23, 2026 A Reform UK-linked think tank has called for sweeping tax cuts for investors and an overhaul of regulation in a report that was described by Richard Tice and Robert Jenrick as a “serious contribution” to the UK’s growth debate. The Centre for a Better Britain has called for the abolition of capital gains taxes and [...]
Burnham urged to launch £26bn tax raid on high earners September 23, 2026 Chancellor John Healey and Prime Minister Andy Burnham could raise £26bn by hiking capital gains taxes and applying national insurance to other areas of income, according to plan put forward by academics that will rattle the City and Westminster ahead of this year’s Budget. Researchers at the Centre for Analysis of Taxation (Centax), consisting of [...]
Burnham adviser slams ‘growth in every postcode’ pledge September 22, 2026 Andy Burnham’s pledge to deliver “growth in every postcode” will result in “wasted taxpayer money and create political problems”, according to one the PM’s most valued economic advisers. Jim O’Neill, who was tipped to take an official role in Burnham’s government, said the Prime Minister should focus on getting gilt yields to fall by 150 [...]
Burnham: Rejoining the EU is a debate ‘for another day’ September 22, 2026 Andy Burnham has refused to rule out launching a bid for the UK to rejoin the EU, saying the debate is “for another day.” Speaking to reporters in New York at the United Nations summit on Tuesday, the Prime Minister said his priority was to “build on the good work that Keir [Starmer] did in [...]
‘Worryingly large’: Labour’s debt cost racks up to £200bn September 22, 2026 More than £200bn has now been spent on covering government debt since Labour came into power, official figures show, reflecting the pressure bond traders have put on public finances in the last two years. Analysis of public finances data by City AM shows that debt interest payable to the government’s lenders in bond markets since [...]
‘Dismal’: Blow to Healey as government borrowing overshoots by billions September 22, 2026 Chancellor John Healey has missed key targets on government borrowing ahead of his inaugural Budget after the UK borrowed more than economists forecast in August. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said borrowing in August was £18.3bn, which was about £3.5bn above a prediction by the Office for Budget Responsibility and overshot market predictions. The [...]
Will our fiscal psychodrama never end? September 22, 2026 I’m sure it wasn’t always like this. There was a time, really not that long ago in the grand scheme of things, when trying to predict the contents of an upcoming Budget was limited to dedicated policy wonks and Westminster’s most dogged journalists. These days, fiscal speculation is a major occupation for several months of [...]
Finance chiefs lobby Healey to protect City from fresh tax grab September 22, 2026 City chiefs have warned against a tax grab on financial services and called on ministers to simplify Britain’s “byzantine” tax system, as fears mount that the Chancellor will use his maiden budget next month to launch another raid on the private sector. The Square Mile’s top industry body, TheCityUK, which counts the UK’s biggest banks [...]