Defence secretary refuses to confirm whether UK missiles were used against Russia November 21, 2024 The defence secretary has insisted he “won’t be drawn on operational details” of the conflict in Ukraine amid reports UK-made missiles have been fired into Russia. Russia’s military said it has shot down two UK-made Storm Shadow missiles, following reports that debris from the weapons had been discovered in the country’s Kursk region, which borders [...]
GB Energy given five years to turn a profit November 20, 2024 The boss of Great British Energy has been given a five-year target for Labour’s flagship state-owned energy company to become “profitable”, MPs have been told. Juergen Maier, who was appointed chairman of GB Energy in June, was asked at the Commons energy security and net zero committee whether he had a timeline on profitability. He [...]
Housing crisis ‘hampers growth’ but minister vows 1.5m target on track November 20, 2024 The UK’s housing crisis “hampers economic growth and productivity”, the housing minister has said, as he insisted the target of 1.5m new homes can be achieved. Labour pledged in its manifesto ahead of the election to deliver the 1.5m net additional dwellings over the course of the Parliament, ending in 2029. It came in response [...]
Lidl boss warns retailers are ‘reeling’ after Budget tax raid November 20, 2024 The boss of budget supermarket Lidl has warned retailers are “reeling” following Labour’s tax raid in the Autumn Budget. The German supermarket’s UK boss Ryan McDonnell said the discount brand was staring down the barrel of “tens of millions of pounds” in extra costs. This comes after the Chancellor unveiled a £25.7bn tax-raising package, with [...]
Surging housing costs push inflation back above Bank of England target November 20, 2024 Inflation has risen back above the Bank of England’s two per cent target, the latest data has shown today. According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) consumer price inflation (CPI) hit 2.3 per cent in October. The figure came in above economists projections. Economists had forecast CPI to come in [...]
Reeves must answer ‘incredibly serious’ questions over CV, Tory MP demands November 19, 2024 Rachel Reeves must answer “incredibly serious” questions over claims she “misrepresented” her CV, a Tory MP has demanded. Richard Holden wrote to the Chancellor following reports she had exaggerated her professional experience at the Bank of England (BoE) and Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS). Reeves told Stylist magazine in 2021 that she spent a decade [...]
UK to relaunch trade talks with India and form new Japan partnership November 19, 2024 The UK is set to relaunch trade talks with India and form a new economic partnership with Japan, Downing Street has announced. It was confirmed that trade discussions with India will reopen at the start of next year, following a bilateral meeting between Sir Keir Starmer and Indian leader Narendra Modi at the G20 summit [...]
Tractors circle Westminster as farmers protest inheritance tax rise November 19, 2024 Thousands of farmers marched on Westminster today in protest against the government’s plans to impose inheritance tax on farms. The Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been urged to meet with representatives from the industry after she unveiled plans in the Budget to impose inheritance tax (IHT) on farms worth more than £1m from April 2026. The [...]
Five things Rachel Reeves should do if she’s serious about growth November 19, 2024 Rachel Reeves’ pensions reforms are welcome, but they are treating the symptoms, not the causes of low growth. Here’s what she should do next…. In her Mansion House speech last week, Rachel Reeves announced the consolidation of the 86 Local Government Pensions Schemes (LGPS) into eight ‘megafunds’, unlocking deep reserves of investment finance. This is [...]
Reeves has been ‘straight with the public’, No10 insists amid CV row November 18, 2024 Rachel Reeves has been “straight with the public” about Britain’s accounts and “restored financial stability”, No10 has insisted, amid claims the Chancellor exaggerated her CV. Reports emerged this weekend that Reeves had inflated the length of her service at the Bank of England in a Stylist interview in 2021. She told the magazine in 2021 [...]