One in three defence firms ‘can’t find graduates to hire’ June 11, 2026 Nearly one in three defence firms can’t find graduates to hire despite a youth unemployment crisis, a new report has found, as universities have been urged to work more closely with businesses. Research by the University of Manchester and CBI Economics has suggested that skills shortages among young people has made it more difficult for [...]
‘AI is not killing all these jobs’: LinkedIn boss on UK hiring slump June 10, 2026 Hiring in the capital is down 32 per cent from January 2019, a steeper fall than in any other region tracked by LinkedIn, as higher interest rates and corporate cost-cutting weigh on firms that dominate London’s labour market. Across the UK, hiring has slowed by 24 per cent on pre-pandemic levels and 10 per cent [...]
As it happened: FTSE 100 and Wall Street hit by stock sell-off; CBI cuts UK GDP June 9, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Rachel Reeves is staring down another bruising growth downgrade this morning after the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) slashed the UK’s GDP forecast to 1.1 per cent for the year. The figure is a drop from 1.4 per cent last year and below the previous consensus of 1.3 [...]
Jeremy Hunt is right to ask Can We Be Rich Again? June 9, 2026 With the CBI’s latest economic forecasts warning of a dramatic spike in unemployment and a prolonged period of anaemic GDP growth, it’s a good time to reflect on the question posed by former chancellor Jeremy Hunt in his latest book, Can We Be Rich Again? The book is the latest in a series of works [...]
CBI: 200,000 more Brits to face unemployment this year as growth crumbles June 9, 2026 The UK economy is set for further pain in the months ahead, a top business group has warned, as consumers and businesses across the country suffer the effects of the Iran conflict, surging energy prices and a raft of government tax hikes. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has said that around 200,000 more Brits [...]
Upgrading the grid risks ending up like HS2 June 7, 2026 Upgrading the UK's electricity grid is a vastly complex project. I hope the government's learned from HS2, writes John Lazar.
Burnham vows to cut the price of a pint as he turns on Labour tax rises June 6, 2026 Andy Burnham has launched a major policy intervention of the Makerfield by-election campaign with a pledge to cut business rates for pubs and ease the tax burden on small businesses, marking a clear break with Keir Starmer’s government. The Greater Manchester mayor said Labour had “got it wrong” on small businesses as he unveiled plans [...]
In 23 months Labour has dragged the UK economy to its knees June 4, 2026 Reading our interview with billionaire John Caudwell, in which he says he was “misled” by Labour’s pitch for power, I’m reminded of just how unambiguous Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves were in the run-up to the 2024 election. They promised to be “the most pro-business government this country has ever seen.” Some of us were [...]
‘Tipping point’: CBI boss slams £345bn business tax burden amid ‘cost of doing business’ crisis June 4, 2026 The boss of the UK’s most influential business group will use a landmark speech to warn that the heavy business tax burden is nudging British firms towards a “tipping point”, directly linking the Labour government’s troubles to cost pressures on firms. At a speech for the Confederation of British Industry (CBI)’s business dinner, chief executive [...]
Collective redundancy reforms could saddle firms with ‘perpetual’ bureaucracy May 25, 2026 The government has been warned against law changes on collective redundancy which businesses say could swamp bosses in more costs and bureaucracy. As part of Labour’s Employment Rights Act, the government is set to require businesses to undertake a consultation of the entire firm whenever they make a certain number of redundancies. Under existing rules, [...]