October Budget could be a ‘tipping point,’ Asda boss warns Burnham
Andy Burnham’s first Budget in October could be a “tipping point” for British businesses and the economy, the chair of supermarket giant Asda has warned.
Allan Leighton, who is attempting to push through a turnaround of the grocer, said it is “too early to tell” whether the government is committed to halting the rise of taxes facing the UK’s businesses but warned the Prime Minister he must not “inhibit growth”.
“The model so far has been to inhibit growth, which is high taxation of consumers, relatively high taxation and lots of costs being piled on business, and [with] those two things you’ll never grow,” he told City AM.
“For me it’s all to play for. I think [it is a] tipping point. It’ll be a tipping point, the Budget, for consumer confidence and growth of the country.”
Leighton has been critical of previous governments, which he said have been “more and more difficult” to deal with and less supportive of businesses.
The Asda chair said it is “too early to tell” if Burnham will support the growth of British firms. “I’m a bit of a Burnham fan, but that’s another story.
“I think he’s a very shrewd politician, and has announced things that are popular. But that’s not the full answer. The full answer is what’s the economic model for the country.”
Business rates reform would make ‘big difference’
The comments echo an intervention by Frasers Group founder Mike Ashley, who on Thursday accused Burnham of choosing “populist” policies over long-term fixes.
“Rather than address the real underlying issues of how the country’s financial affairs are managed […] it is easier for you to pick topics which provide good media soundbites and the old salve of yet more regulation – which is not what the country needs to become competitive,” Ashley told the Prime Minister in a letter.
The retail tycoon’s letter took aim at Burnham’s “disastrous” position on business rates, and Leighton said that reforms to this tax would make a “big difference” for British firms.
Retailers have urged Labour to meet its manifesto pledge to “replace” the business rates system, but Burnham this week announced a review into the tax which covers only pubs and hotels.
Leighton returned to Asda in November 2024, more than three decades after he first joined the grocer. As marketing director and later chief executive, he overhauled the retailer and orchestrated its blockbuster £6.7bn sale to US retail giant Walmart.
“If I didn’t think we were going to restore the business to what it was, then I wouldn’t be here. So I’m confident that we’re doing the right things, but all these businesses are the same. It’s how you execute in every individual store, every day,” he said.
New Asda CEO ‘not imminent’
Leighton expects his turnaround of Asda to take between three and five years, adding that his previous efforts at the grocer took four.
The grocer is in a “not dissimilar” position now compared to when he first joined the business, though its clothing, petrol and convenience arms “give us another couple channels to fight in,” he said.
Leighton is currently Asda’s sole figurehead as its chair, and he said that the appointment of a chief executive is “not imminent”.
“The preference would be to appoint a CEO from inside the company, and we have a very highly talented group of executives, and my hope is that somebody would emerge from the group.
“But that is not imminent yet because we’re still working with the group that we’ve got to deliver what we’re doing. But that’s the intent,” he said.
Asda returned to growth for the first time in more than two years in the seven weeks to mid-August, with like-for-like sales excluding fuel rising by 0.2 per cent.
The private-equity-owned grocer fell to a £989m pre-tax loss in the year to December 2025, as its debt pile fell from £4.1bn to £3.5bn.