John Caudwell: I backed Labour, but they haven’t kept their promises Opinion We should be making it easier for entrepreneurs to invest, employ and expand. Instead we are giving them more reasons to look elsewhere.
Services sector cuts jobs for nearly two years under cost pressures Economics Employment in the UK’s services sector dropped for the 23rd consecutive month in August as businesses maintained hiring freezes and trimmed headcounts following cost pressures. S&P’s latest Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for the services industry – which is closely monitored by economists – revealed the sector has continued its longest continuous stretch of workforce reductions [...]
M&G: FTSE 100 giant hits out at Rayner’s ground rent cap as it suffers loss Property Asset manager M&G has swung to a loss driven by the Labour government’s introduction of a cap on existing ground rents. The FTSE 100 group hit out at the government after it reported a £165m loss for the first six months of the year, driven by a £325m write-down eating into its bottom-line. In its [...]
Burnham calls for honesty then sticks his head in the sand September 3, 2026 Andy Burnham declared this week that “change begins with honesty.” My ears pricked up. Was our new Prime Minister about to deliver some hard truths? Of course he wasn’t. The honesty Burnham had in mind was very much “his truth” rather than “the truth.” We were told that all the country’s problems were down to [...]
Badenoch: Cut benefits to fund £10bn defence spending package September 2, 2026 Kemi Badenoch has urged the government to cut housing benefits, child benefits and re-route public investment in order to fund a £10bn boost on defence spending every year. The Tory leader, who had previously called for an increase in defence expenditure without laying out full funding plans, said that Chancellor John Healey “should adopt” plans [...]
Labour calls for Mayor to explore London Stadium sale to West Ham September 2, 2026 Labour have called on Mayor Sadiq Khan to explore selling the London Stadium to West Ham United. Labour assembly member Bassam Mahfouz has written to Lord Khan urging him to relieve the London taxpayer of the £1.75bn burden of the existing deal between City Hall and the Championship football stadium. The long-term tenancy agreed by [...]
Burnham refuses to rule out more borrowing and blames Tories for debt crisis September 2, 2026 Andy Burnham has refused to rule out borrowing more and raising taxes to fund his government’s spending plans, as he blamed the UK’s vulnerability to a global bond rout on the Conservatives. Speaking at his first Prime Minister’s Questions, Burnham said spiralling debt costs in the UK, which have hit near two-decade highs in recent [...]
As Sir Keir Starmer quits parliament, will Zack Polanski replace him? September 1, 2026 Sir Keir Starmer is set to resign as the MP for Holborn and St Pancras in order to focus on work in defence and international affairs. The former Prime Minister told the Camden New Journal that he would focus on issues such as “defence, security, trade and technology in a fast-changing world” after leaving parliament. [...]
Healey facing £6bn hit as UK borrowing costs reach highest point since financial crisis September 1, 2026 UK borrowing costs have hit their highest level since the financial crisis as gilts were swept up in a mass rout across global bond markets. The UK government is set to pay a higher rate on debt interest as 10-year gilt yields, the benchmark for borrowing costs, were up by as much as 15 basis [...]
Burnham’s presidential summer is over September 1, 2026 Andy Burnham has been enjoying a presidential summer. He’s communicated with the public through podcasts and social media; delivered the occasional speech; toured the country and generally made his own weather. Today, he’ll come crashing back down to parliamentary reality. Two months ago there were reports that the then mayor of Manchester and Makerfield by [...]