Labour ministers ordered to stop relying on emergency funds October 9, 2025 Labour ministers have been told they will be blocked from using the government’s reserve funds to pay public sector staff and will only be given cash in exceptional circumstances. James Murray, the chief secretary to the Treasury, has told colleagues across the Cabinet that access to rainy day funds will be limited as the government [...]
Labour’s unemployment benefit reforms could ‘save £3bn a year’ October 9, 2025 A government proposal to replace the unemployment benefits system with an “unemployment insurance” benefit could save the government up to £3bn a year despite being higher than the current new style jobseeker’s allowance payment, a new report has indicated. Labour officials are mulling over plans to cut the welfare bill to reduce the size of [...]
Business confidence slumps to three-year low as tax fears ‘quash risk-taking’ October 9, 2025 Business confidence has plummeted to its lowest level in three years, an industry body’s leading quarterly survey has found, as rising tax fears ahead of the Budget are “quashing” investment and growth in the UK economy. The Labour government has boasted that the country was “open for business” after it struck investment deals with tech [...]
Autumn Budget: ‘Window is closing’ on Labour’s growth mission October 9, 2025 Ahead of the Autumn Budget, City Reporter Samuel Norman sits down with top industry names for a Budget Briefing. This week, chief executive of BusinessLDN shares what he thinks could be the capital’s 21st century moment. The “window is closing” on the government’s mission to achieve economic growth, the boss of London’s business advocacy group [...]
Kemi Badenoch pledges to abolish stamp duty October 8, 2025 Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has pledged to abolish stamp duty on primary residences to help support people moving into their first home as she centred her speech on backing people wishing to “get ahead in life”. In a speech delivered to Conservative Party members at its Manchester conference, Badenoch said the Tories would cut stamp [...]
Bank of England sounds alarm on ‘high risk’ AI bubble October 8, 2025 The Bank of England has warned of the potential for a “sharp correction” in global markets due to the “stretched” stock valuations from the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. The central bank’s Financial Policy Committee has warned a crash in the roaring value of US tech giants could spark trouble overseas. “A crystallisation of such global [...]
Kemi Badenoch pledges ‘golden rule’ to cut deficit October 8, 2025 Tory leader Kemi Badenoch will reveal her plan to reduce the public deficit will be a “golden rule” in a crucial speech setting out her party’s hopes to regain voters’ trust on the UK economy. Addressing Conservative Party members on Wednesday, Badenoch is set to lay out a central mission underpinning hopes of reviving the [...]
Reeves must reject this finger-wagging, fun-sapping, tax-loving nonsense October 8, 2025 The Chancellor may have felt in need of a stiff drink after absorbing the latest productivity figures handed to her by the Office for Budget Responsibility, and who could blame her? The OBR is widely expected to have significantly downgraded its productivity forecasts while at the same time conceding that it’s been overestimating productivity growth [...]
Badenoch preferred as Prime Minister over Starmer October 8, 2025 Kemi Badenoch has been handed a boost ahead of her make-or-break Tory conference speech today as fresh polling has shown the Tory leader is preferred as Prime Minister over Keir Starmer. The latest City AM/Freshwater Strategy survey has shown that Badenoch leads Starmer by two percentage points as the country’s preferred Prime Minister, a marginal [...]
Mel Stride: I would raise income tax in Rachel Reeves’ position October 7, 2025 Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride has said he would raise income taxes if he were in Rachel Reeves’ position, facing a £30bn black hole in the public finances. Speaking at a fringe event at the Tory party conference in Manchester, Stride said raising income taxes was the “cleanest” tax hike option available. His comments will likely [...]