Pagefield owner PPHC ramps up political consultancy with WPI acquisition March 23, 2026 AIM-listed consultancy firm PPHC has ramped up its politics offering after acquiring government relations business WPI Strategy. Founded in 2014, WPI turns over around £2.5m per year and counts the likes of London City Airport, Microsoft, Pension Insurance Corporation, and Vodafone Three among its clients. The company, which counts a number of former Labour advisers [...]
Starmer vows to use ‘every lever’ to protect Brits from damage to UK economy March 23, 2026 Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to use “every lever” to prevent households from being hit by higher energy prices amid growing fears the Iran war is wreaking havoc on the UK economy. On Monday morning, the Prime Minister suggested an emergency Cobra meeting between the most senior government ministers and the Bank of England governor [...]
Sunak urges rethink on taxing jobs as AI begins to reshape hiring March 22, 2026 Rishi Sunak has called for a rethink of how work is taxed, warning that AI is beginning to shift hiring patterns as companies weigh the cost of people against automation. Writing in The Times, Sunak said employers face immediate costs when hiring through national insurance contributions (NIC), while deploying AI carries no equivalent tax burden, [...]
Borrowing costs soar to post-financial crisis high in blow to Reeves March 20, 2026 UK government borrowing costs have soared to their highest level since the Great Financial Crisis in 2008, with markets frightened by the state of public finances in the face of another global price shock. Gilt yields have inched up over the course of the week, with the ten-year gilt yield topping 4.9 per cent on [...]
Reeves hit by spike in government borrowing March 20, 2026 UK government borrowing rose by more than expected in February, it has been revealed, adding a strain on public finances as Chancellor Rachel Reeves faces trouble ahead with deciding the government’s response to the war in Iran. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said that the government borrowed £14bn, with economists having predicted the [...]
One in five founders expect to leave UK in next 12 months March 19, 2026 A fifth of British entrepreneurs expect to leave the country in the next 12 months as confidence in the government sinks to a new low. Fresh data from the Entrepreneurs Network has revealed the growing fears of a ‘brain drain’ could be set to escalate with just over one in five founders pencilling in plans [...]
Sadiq Khan urges Labour to back return to EU March 19, 2026 Sadiq Khan has called for Labour to campaign for the UK to rejoin the European Union, days after Rachel Reeves delivered one of the most Europhile speeches since Brexit. The London Mayor said his party should move beyond discussions about access to the single market or joining the customs union by 2030, and instead move [...]
UK job market weakens as economy set to worsen March 19, 2026 The jobs market failed to provide more positive signs for the UK economy as official data suggested that fewer postings were available for job seekers. An estimate published on Thursday showed that the number of payrolled employees dropped by 49,000 in February while data showed a small rise in January. The Office for National Statistics [...]
Zack Polanski’s economic agenda is dangerous…and popular March 19, 2026 There was a time when the Green Party was all about recycling, rewilding and veganism, but these days the economy forms the centrepiece of their pitch to voters. Yesterday their leader, Zack Polanksi, set out his party’s economic vision and he started with a diagnosis. He said people feel like they’re “running every day just to [...]
Badenoch says ‘strong woman’ should replace Starmer March 18, 2026 Kemi Badenoch called for a “strong woman” to replace Sir Keir Starmer as Prime Minister after repeated refusals to answer whether he spoke to Lord Peter Mandelson before appointing him as ambassador to the US. Badenoch attacked Starmer for deflecting questions about Mandelson, even as the Prime Minister’s spokesman confirmed last week that it was [...]