Is this a sweet trade deal with the EU – or does it sound a bit fishy? May 19, 2025 Keir Starmer will be boasting about his latest catch in international diplomacy: a trade deal with the European Union, which the government hopes will boost the chances of landing higher growth. In an agreement that hands EU boats continued rights in British seas until 2038, slashing red tape on food checks and increasing cooperation on [...]
Pragmatism or surrender? Starmer’s EU deal explained. May 19, 2025 Prime Minister Keir Starmer has declared that “Britain is back on the world stage” as an agreement on the post-Brexit “reset” of relations with the EU was unveiled at a summit in London. There are provisions for key areas like food standards, energy, youth mobility, security, and steel with ministers claiming that the new deals [...]
Boris Johnson: Starmer the ‘manacled gimp of Brussels’ after ‘one-sided’ EU trade deal May 19, 2025 Boris Johnson has slammed Sir Keir Starmer as an “orange ball-chewing manacled gimp of Brussels”, in a colourful post on X. The former Prime Minister repeatedly referred to his Labour successor as “two-tier Keir”, suggesting that the “hopelessly one sided” deal would render the UK “the non-voting punk of the EU Commission”. The intervention follows [...]
Firms delay tax payments as costs soar May 19, 2025 Unpaid business tax liabilities are averaging as much as £28bn a month this year, official data has revealed, suggesting firms are struggling to keep up with mounting costs. Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ £40bn tax hikes last autumn, including rises to employers’ national insurance contributions, were designed to lift the public finances and reduce borrowing. But new [...]
Terms emerge on UK-EU ‘reset’ talks May 19, 2025 Decisions on security, the youth mobility scheme, fishing and agriculture are anticipated to emerge from today’s UK-EU “reset” summit. These talks are part of a routine five year review of the UK-EU trade and cooperation agreement, which was signed in 2020. While agreements on key aspects of the deal have been completed, Trade Secretary Jonathan [...]
Liz Truss: UK’s shortest-serving PM rakes in the cash May 19, 2025 Liz Truss, the UK’s shortest-serving Prime Minister, has seen her earnings rise after leaving Number 10. The former PM has raked in £112,657 in the year to 31 March, 2025, through a business she and her husband set up. The figure is up from the £104,715 the firm reported in net assets during its prior [...]
Visa for the ‘super rich’ won’t bring back non-doms, MPs say May 19, 2025 The government has floated a new “investor visa” in an attempt to stop the flight of millionaires from the UK, with plans in the early stages of development. The visa would reward those who invest heavily into the UK – particularly in strategically important areas such as AI and clean energy – with a route [...]
Keir Starmer reaches tentative EU trade deal ahead of summit May 19, 2025 Sir Keir Starmer has agreed a tentative trade deal with the EU, the biggest shake-up of Britain’s relationship with the bloc since Brexit. The UK-EU deal is expected to involve a new trading arrangement and a border deal and could extend to a new security and defence pact, which could open up access to the [...]
Reeves’ tax hikes are ‘death blow to London,’ Britain’s richest warn May 18, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves is under renewed pressure as Britain’s top business leaders and entrepreneurs blasted her economic agenda following The Sunday Times Rich List revealing a record drop in the country’s number of billionaires. Reeves’ crack down on “non-dom” status has accelerated an exodus of leading business bosses fleeing the UK to avoid the Chancellor’s [...]
Reform UK’s fiscal plans could spark ‘Sterling crisis’, economist warns May 16, 2025 Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice has hinted at ambitions to become chancellor if his party wins the next general election. What does this mean for the UK’s finances? Simon French, an economist at Panmure Liberum who has advised the government, estimates that Reform UK’s plans would leave the UK with an “immediate” fiscal gap [...]