Stride criticises FCA for not investigating Treasury December 4, 2025 Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride has criticised the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)’s decision to hold back from launching an investigation into whether the Treasury engaged in market manipulation before the Budget, adding that there was a risk of a “precedent” being set where confidential information is leaked “without consequence”. Earlier on Thursday, FCA chief executive Nikhil [...]
Government climate tsar picks up enough air miles for six trips around the world December 4, 2025 The government’s climate envoy has totted up more than 150,000 airmiles since she was appointed by Labour, in trips to conferences such as COP 30. That’s more than six times the circumference of the earth. Rachel Kyte reports directly to energy secretary Ed Miliband and foreign secretary Yvette Cooper. The role of climate envoy had [...]
Construction in worst downturn for five-and-a-half years December 4, 2025 The construction sector suffered its worst downturn in output for five and a half years last month, new figures have shown, in a warning to the Labour government as it hopes to build 1.5m homes by 2030. A monthly S&P Global survey showed that the decline in output rapidly accelerated over the month, with the [...]
Growing threats to UK financial stability December 4, 2025 What keeps you up at night? For the governor of the Bank of England it’s a long list of threats to the UK’s financial system – so let’s take a look at them. The Bank of England’s latest financial stability report makes for a sobering read. It says “risks to financial stability have increased during [...]
Reform UK receives £9m donation from billionaire businessman Christopher Harborne December 4, 2025 Reform UK has received the largest ever political donation from a single living person as Thai-based billionaire Christopher Harborne injected £9m into the party. Reform’s precursor organisation, the Brexit Party, previously received donations from Harborne in 2019 and 2020 but it had not yet received donations directly from the billionaire. His £9m donation in August [...]
The Leaky War: How Rachel Reeves and the OBR came to blows December 4, 2025 Between 5:16am and 11:30am on the day of the Budget, as Rachel Reeves was putting the finishing touches to her House of Commons speech, 7 audacious internet users made 44 attempts to break into the servers of Britain’s fiscal watchdog to get an early glimpse of her plans. An hour before Reeves stood up in [...]
Unemployment nightmare is entirely Labour’s fault December 4, 2025 Rising unemployment is a double evil; it both reveals problems in the economy and exacerbates them. Unemployment has risen every month since Labour returned to power, and the number of people out of work will soon hit levels last seen during the pandemic. Last month, the rate of job losses was at its fastest for [...]
Accountants expect price hikes and job cuts following Budget December 4, 2025 A chartered accountancy body has urged the government to consult on a path to a single VAT rate to simplify and restore business confidence following the Autumn Budget. The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), which represents over 140,000 UK members, reported negative overall sentiment toward the recent Budget. According to exclusive [...]
Starmer blames sweeping tax hikes on Tories December 3, 2025 Keir Starmer blamed sweeping tax hikes at the Budget aimed at funding extra welfare spending and building a larger fiscal buffer on the previous Conservative government’s economic performance. Responding to questions from opposition leader Kemi Badenoch on whether tax rises were necessary, Starmer pointed the finger at a £16bn downgrade to productivity forecasts by the [...]
Whitehall was ‘shambolic’ in dealing with collapsed China spy case December 3, 2025 Whitehall officials presided over “shambolic” proceedings in the prosecution of two alleged Chinese spies, a report has suggested, with both government officials and prosecutors coming under fire over the collapse of the case. A report by parliament’s Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy said the collapse of the prosecution against former parliamentary researcher Christopher [...]