Defence splurge cannot fund planned expansion, military chief says January 14, 2026 The Labour government’s commitment to increase defence expenditure to 2.5 per cent of GDP from next year will not fully fund the planned expansion of the armed forces, a top military official has warned. Sir RIchard Knighton, chief of the defence staff, told MPs on Monday the rise in government funding would not be enough [...]
Davos: Economic war is the ‘biggest global risk’ January 14, 2026 Trade wars and economic disputes between global powers are the biggest risk to the world over the next two years, business leaders, academics and government officials have said in a report ahead of the World Economic Forum’s Davos meeting. Nearly a fifth of respondents in a survey (18 per cent) by the World Economic Forum [...]
‘We’re turning the country around’: U-turns put pressure on defiant Starmer January 14, 2026 Keir Starmer attempted to justify a string of policy U-turns on everything from business rates to the mandatory digital ID, claiming the Labour government was “turning the country around”. In an awkward Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, opposition leader Kemi Badenoch grilled Starmer on recent U-turns, which prove tricky for MPs and strategists to explain [...]
Starmer to U-turn on mandatory digital ID January 14, 2026 Sir Keir Starmer is expected to perform another U-turn by scrapping plans to make a national digital ID compulsory for all Brits. After backtracking on a number of policies, from the farm tax to the end of winter fuel payments, the Prime Minister is set to reveal that the government will no longer make all [...]
The City has moved on from Brexit January 14, 2026 Whisper it, but Brexit is slowly inserting itself back into our national conversation. We remain, thankfully, a long way from the frenzied tribalism of the referendum campaign or the energy-sapping parliamentary drama that followed, but while these days Nigel Farage may be more interested in small boats than backstops, the issues is being discussed – [...]
Former OBR chair takes aim at Rachel Reeves’ fiscal rules January 13, 2026 The former chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility has taken aim at Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ fiscal rules, suggesting they prevent UK public finances from building enough “resilience”. In his first public appearance since his resignation last month due to the leaked Budget, Richard Hughes said the current fiscal rules were “among the loosest” the [...]
Trump tells Iranian people: ‘Help is on its way’ January 13, 2026 President Trump has threatened Iran’s autocratic leaders over the killing of protestors while suggesting he was preparing to intervene with military action in the country, In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the country’s authorities “will pay a big price” over the killing of protestors following unrest in the country. He added that he [...]
Scottish higher earners at risk of being hammered with more tax January 13, 2026 Higher earners in Scotland could pay over £1,000 more in extra tax, as the Scottish Finance Secretary copies Rachel Reeves’ Autumn Budget playbook. Finance Secretary Shona Robison opted to raise the tax threshold for both basic and intermediate tax payers, but left the higher rate unchanged, which is likely to drag more earners into higher [...]
FRC chief urges audit reform before next corporate scandal January 13, 2026 The boss of the accountancy regulator has issued a direct warning to the government, urging them to pass audit reform legislation during “peacetime” rather than waiting for a major corporate collapse or scandal. Speaking on the latest episode of the Following the Rules podcast, Financial Reporting Council (FRC) CEO Richard Moriarty, said: “Given the thinking that’s gone [...]
Vast majority of Brits expect more damaging tax hikes in 2026 January 13, 2026 Nearly four in five Brits are bracing themselves for further tax rises this year, with voters fearing that more money going into government coffers will damage growth. Keir Starmer has kicked off the year with pitches on improving the cost of living for millions of people across the country. Extra welfare payments for some families [...]