Stride vows to protect OBR in new dividing line with Farage January 12, 2026 Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride has vowed to protect the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) in any future Conservative government, drawing a dividing line with Reform’s Nigel Farage on approaches to controlling public finances. Stride is expected to re-establish the Conservative Party’s firm commitment to maintaining the fiscal watchdog as an independent body scoring the effects [...]
No growth expected for November due to late Budget January 12, 2026 New GDP figures this week will show zero growth in the UK economy as weeks of uncertainty around the Budget weighed down on activity in November, according to economists. A Bloomberg poll of economists predicted the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to write in zero GDP growth in the second last month of the year. [...]
Jobseeker numbers rise ‘sharply’ in labour market setback January 12, 2026 The number of jobseekers rose “sharply” in December alongside a slump in demand for new hires, analysis has shown, posing a threat to the future of the UK labour market. Analysis of S&P Global’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) indicated the jobs market weakened further at the end of last year, undermining hopes of a recovery [...]
Business confidence lowest in nearly five years, BDO says January 12, 2026 Business confidence fell to its lowest level in nearly five years, an advisory company indicated, as the Labour government is expected to oversee a small improvement in the UK economy this year. BDO’s optimism index, which tracks sentiment by surveying 4,000 executives, dropped to its weakest reading since January 2021 at the end of last [...]
Manufacturers warn UK faces ‘tipping point’ on competitiveness January 12, 2026 The Labour government has been handed a major warning over the future of the manufacturing industry as the sector battles rising costs and pressures to shift business to shift overseas. A fresh survey from the sector’s industry body Make UK showed senior executives in manufacturing firms feared cost pressures would soon reach a “tipping point”. [...]
Whitehall in talks with City for non-dom reform after exodus January 11, 2026 Whitehall is locked in talks with City bigwigs as the Labour government seeks to attract wealthy investors to the UK following the tumultuous fallout to the scrapping of the non-dom regime. The non-dom status was changed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in the Autumn Budget 2024 and was swapped for a residence-based system that taxes all [...]
Starmer and Reeves ‘credibility shot’ after pubs tax U-turn, says Badenoch January 11, 2026 The credibility of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves has faced a bruising after they were forced to make a dramatic U-turn on their business rates reform for pubs, the leader of the Conservative party has said. Ministers are set to water down the business rates bombshell slapped on pubs following fierce [...]
Migrant visa applications plummet in test to Reeves January 10, 2026 Migrants’ skilled worker visa applications plummeted in December, posing a test to Rachel Reeves and economists at the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to take control of public finances. New figures showed that the number of skilled worker visa applications dropped to 2,500 in December, having increased to a peak of 10,100 in April 2024. [...]
Venezuela is ‘uninvestable’ as Trump unnerves market analysts January 10, 2026 Venezuela is “uninvestable” and requires sweeping reforms before oil giants can support US ambitions, a top chief executive has warned Donald Trump, in a warning that comes amid growing concerns the president is set to rattle markets and hit global economies. ExxonMobil boss Darren Woods appeared to distance the company from the president’s ambitions to [...]
Pound to suffer ‘until May’ amid Starmer leadership troubles January 9, 2026 Sterling will suffer from speculation over Keir Starmer’s leadership until at least the May elections, economists have predicted, with 2026 tipped to become another year where Westminster infighting sparks City jitters. Analysts at Investec have suggested that the further strengthening of the pound will be held back by continued questions over Starmer’s authority across the [...]