‘What breathing space?’ Top economist and Labour MP debate the Budget October 29, 2026 Moments after John Healey sat down in the Commons, the City AM studio was filling up with guests to chew over what we’d just heard. Our columnist Helen Thomas, aka Blonde Money, joined Editor Christian May and Comment Editor Alys Denby to discuss the economic context and political impact, before it fell to Labour’s Callum [...]
Healey’s Budget prices in wave of fresh North Sea drilling October 29, 2026 John Healey’s Budget has assumed the government will approve drilling projects that produce more than a billion barrels of oil and gas, meaning ministers will face a hole in the public finances if they fail to green-light new North Sea extraction. In its scorecard for the Chancellor’s maiden fiscal event, the Office for Budget Responsibility [...]
Healey tells Bailey to loosen UK banking regulation after tax hike October 29, 2026 John Healey has told Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey to loosen banking regulation “as quickly as possible” after the government raised taxes on the sector in the Budget. The Chancellor wrote to Bailey following the Budget with a direction for the Financial Policy Committee (FPC) to balance its stability mandate with support for economic [...]
Grosvenor Casinos owner warns of £9m tax hit after Healey’s gambling duty hike October 29, 2026 Casino operator Rank Group has warned that John Healey’s gambling tax hike will deliver a hit of around £9m a year, as the industry begins to count the cost of Wednesday’s Budget. The London-listed owner of Grosvenor Casinos and Mecca Bingo said the increase in Machine Games Duty (MGD) from 20 to 25 per cent, [...]
Healey promises ‘reduction’ in welfare spending before election October 29, 2026 John Healey has promised there will be a “reduction” in the welfare bill before the next election despite the Budget not addressing huge payments on benefits and pensions. Healey told broadcasters on Thursday morning that the government was “ready to take some pretty tough decisions” to rein in spending although he echoed his predecessors in [...]
As it happened: WPP leads FTSE higher as market digests ‘do no harm’ Budget October 29, 2026 Welcome to City AM‘s FTSE 100 liveblog. It’s Thursday morning and stocks are set to rise on the market open. Investors will be picking through John Healey’s maiden Budget throughout the day, which pushed up shares in banks and gambling firms after they were spared worse tax raids. The FTSE 100 closed level on Wednesday [...]
Autumn Budget 2026: ‘Steady as she goes’ is no good when the economy’s adrift October 29, 2026 John Healey avoided several icebergs but there are nasty storms on the horizon, says William Nixon The Chancellor opened his speech by claiming the Budget would help “steer” the UK’s economy through “global economic storms”. He can be commended for avoiding the twin icebergs of major new tax hikes and pre-Budget speculation that sank Rachel [...]
Another all-time-high tax burden? Business as usual then October 29, 2026 The Autumn Budget has paved away for an all-time-high tax burden, but isn't that just what we all expect now, writes Valentin Boboc.
‘Smoke and mirrors’: Why high street still faces a £250m tax hike under Healey October 29, 2026 Andy Burnham propelled himself to Downing Street by pledging a revival of Britain’s struggling high streets. Felix Armstrong asks: has John Healey delivered it? Among the sectors clamouring for John Healey’s attention ahead of his maiden Budget, none were louder than those calling for the government to revitalise Britain’s ailing high street retailers. Shuttered shops, [...]
A breathing space Budget? This is asphyxiation October 29, 2026 If there were treats in John Healey’s pre-Halloween Budget they were hidden in a gloopy soup of tricks. Forget the talk about a low-key, ‘do no harm’ fiscal event; the Chancellor has delivered a mess of new interventions, subsidies, tax rises, quangos and complications against a backdrop of truly terrifying economic forecasts. Let’s start with [...]