Mark my words: tax rises are coming September 18, 2026 After Rachel Reeves’ tax raids of over £40bn in her 2024 Budget and £26bn in the 2025 edition, it should be inconceivable that John Healey will come back for more. Yet all the sights point in that direction, says Emma Revell No City AM reader could be unaware that Britain’s current economic outlook is not [...]
Nationalise Thames Water and block private rescue deal, MPs tell Burnham September 18, 2026 Andy Burnham and his government are facing increasing pressure to take control of Thames Water after a group of MPs warned a rescue deal led by its creditors should be rejected. A group of the stricken utility’s lenders, known as London & Valley Water, is vying to seize control of the company in a £10bn [...]
Ignorance is no excuse for Labour’s economic failures September 18, 2026 John Healey is copying Rachel Reeves’ technique of gaslighting the nation into thinking he had no idea what the bind markets and OBR have been screaming at every fiscal event, says Tom Harwood It feels like “I Got You Babe” by Sonny and Cher should have been irritatingly on repeat every morning this week. Why? [...]
As it happened: Stocks slip as London’s rally loses momentum September 18, 2026 Welcome back to City AM‘s FTSE 100 liveblog. Stocks in London fell this morning as a three-day rally faded and erased much of the gains made following the Bank of England’s decision to hold interest rates yesterday. The FTSE 100 was trading down nearly one per cent at 12:50pm, dragged lower by falls for Shell [...]
James Watt: Andy Burnham blames everyone but himself for the NEETs crisis September 17, 2026 Telling young people they’ve been let down by ‘the system’ is a narrative of despair that removes all agency from young people. If Andy Burnham really wants to help NEETs he should get out of employers’ way, says James Watt Andy Burnham’s recent comments about the growing number of young people not in education, employment [...]
Britain needs tax devolution, but beware of fiscal war September 17, 2026 Britain is an outlier for tax centralisation, but devolution can go badly wrong, says Tim Sarson Last week government front benchers and local leaders from across England got together at Number 10 North to discuss the details of a new Visitor Levy, or tourism tax. Quite a momentous moment in its own way, because this [...]
Sir James Cleverly: London needs its mojo back September 17, 2026 Council takeovers in Westminster and Wandsworth have offered the Tories a new confidence boost in London. Sir James Cleverly, once close to becoming party leader, speaks to Maurício Alencar about his ambition to lead the Conservatives into the next London mayoral election in 2028. Unprompted, Sir James Cleverly insists it’s “nonsense” that London is a [...]
Andrew Griffith tells Burnham to rule out Budget tax rises September 16, 2026 Shadow chancellor Andrew Griffith will urge Labour to rule out further tax rises on businesses at next month’s Budget, as the Conservatives set out plans to cut the compliance burden facing small firms and the self-employed. In his first major speech since taking the role, Griffith will call on Andy Burnham and chancellor John Healey [...]
Burnham considers giving mayors ‘control over water companies’ September 16, 2026 Prime Minister Andy Burnham plans to create nine regional bodies led by mayors that could bring water companies under public control. Under the proposals, regional leaders would sit on boards alongside public health officials, customers and environmental campaigners. Alongside setting company objectives, it is understood the boards will collect customer feedback through consultation mechanisms modelled [...]
Burnham warns of ‘challenging’ Budget and hits back at ‘socialists with TikTok’ jibe September 16, 2026 Andy Burnham has warned Brits to expect a “challenging” Budget as he hit back at his former adviser for accusing him of being a “socialist with better TikToks”. Burnham’s comments will be interpreted as an indication that tax hikes will likely form part of October’s Budget, as his pledge to give households “breathing space” on [...]