Andrew Griffith: My FTSE 100 experience means I know how to balance the books September 3, 2026 Andrew Griffith’s fierce interest in politics long preceded his involvement in it. Aged 26, he appeared in the audience of a 1997 Question Time show, in which host David Dimbleby gave him the opportunity to speak to would-be PM Tony Blair. He didn’t hold back. “You may be the glossy smart marketing, but you haven’t [...]
Badenoch: Cut benefits to fund £10bn defence spending package September 2, 2026 Kemi Badenoch has urged the government to cut housing benefits, child benefits and re-route public investment in order to fund a £10bn boost on defence spending every year. The Tory leader, who had previously called for an increase in defence expenditure without laying out full funding plans, said that Chancellor John Healey “should adopt” plans [...]
Burnham refuses to rule out more borrowing and blames Tories for debt crisis September 2, 2026 Andy Burnham has refused to rule out borrowing more and raising taxes to fund his government’s spending plans, as he blamed the UK’s vulnerability to a global bond rout on the Conservatives. Speaking at his first Prime Minister’s Questions, Burnham said spiralling debt costs in the UK, which have hit near two-decade highs in recent [...]
Ditch the ‘usual suspects’: Gov.uk founder urges Labour to look beyond Big Four consultants September 2, 2026 Labour has loudly pledged to slash taxpayer spending on external consultants. However, the founder of a City-based digital consultancy firm told City AM that the government still relies on private firms to plug operational gaps because the civil service previously “got rid of the wrong skills”. Ben Terrett, chief executive and founder of Public Digital, said the [...]
Mortgage nightmare as investors price in three interest rate hikes September 2, 2026 Investors have priced in three interest rate hikes over the next two years as a global bond market rout sent UK gilt yields soaring. Two-year gilt yields, which gauges short term interest rate expectations, have jumped over 4.5 per cent, pushing up borrowing costs and putting the UK’s economic stability under threat. The Bank of [...]
‘Large tax hikes on the way’: How the global bond rout is boxing in Healey September 2, 2026 Chancellor John Healey is likely to roll-out “large tax hikes” at this year’s Budget due to a rout in global bond markets pushing up the cost of government borrowing, economists have said. A jump in the 10-year gilt yield to the highest level since August 2007 could “further erode” the £22.7bn level of fiscal headroom [...]
IMF sounds alarm on borrowing costs surge as bond rout deepens September 2, 2026 The global rise in borrowing costs is a “particular concern,” the International Monetary Fund has said, as UK bond yields reach a level last seen in the financial crisis. The yield on the 10-year UK gilt climbed four basis points on Wednesday morning to near 5.27 per cent, which followed the previous day’s rally that [...]
Jim O’Neill: Capital gains tax hike ‘looms’ as top option for Burnham September 2, 2026 Lord Jim O’Neill has warned a hike to capital gains tax “looms out” as one of the easiest revenue-raising options for Andy Burnham and his chancellor, John Healey, as the pair draw up plans for their first Budget in October. “They’ve ruled out the three main taxes, so if they’re going to have to find [...]
Burnham’s in hock to the bond markets – whether he likes it or not September 2, 2026 Andy Burnham once said this country shouldn’t be in hock to the bond markets, so it was unfortunate that his much-hyped return to the House of Commons yesterday was overshadowed by the surging cost of servicing government debt. The yield on the ten-year gilt has hit its highest level since 2008. The longer term 30 [...]
UK economy stuck in ‘slow lane’ as business investment to slump September 1, 2026 A slump in business investment will drag on the UK economy’s potential for growth over the rest of the year as industry chiefs warned that the country was stuck in the “slow lane”. The British Chambers of Commerce has warned that the UK economy is set for a slowdown in momentum over the remaining two [...]