OECD: Labour is pushing UK inflation to second highest in G7 December 2, 2025 The UK is set to suffer the second highest level of inflation in the G7 over the next year as a result of the Labour government’s decisions to pile extra costs on businesses, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has said as it also warned recent tax hikes will hit growth. In its [...]
Bank of England warns of rising global threat as lenders’ capital rules slashed December 2, 2025 The Bank of England has warned of increased global risks to financial stability, even as it slashed rules imposed on UK lenders dictating the amount of capital they must hold. The central bank said “risks to financial stability have increased during 2025”. “Global risks remain elevated and material uncertainty in the global macroeconomic outlook persists,” [...]
FTSE 100 Live: OBR chiefs face MP grilling; Food inflation slows December 2, 2025 Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) admitted its “worst failure in the 15-year history” of the fiscal watchdog on Monday. This morning, from 10am, two of its remaining spokespeople will be facing a grilling from the Treasury select committee of MPs. The sensational leak of [...]
Voters blame Labour for tax hikes amid gloomy outlook December 2, 2025 A majority of voters believe that the raft of tax-raising measures unveiled at last week’s Budget prove that Labour has failed to fix the public finances after more than year in office. Senior Labour officials including Chancellor Rachel Reeves have suggested that the government faced constraints on public finances as a result of international trade [...]
Businesses left ‘in limbo’ during Budget speculation as bosses feel bruised December 2, 2025 The UK’s private sector was left in a state of “limbo” amid months of Budget speculation leading to delayed investment plans, a leading survey has found, underscoring claims that the government misled the public and businesses over tax rises and fiscal constraints. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI)’s monthly private sector survey has revealed how [...]
The biggest risk to this government is no longer economic turbulence, but itself December 2, 2025 A Budget meant to project discipline has instead exposed confusion, mistrust and political instability around the Chancellor, eroding confidence in both markets and her own party, says Helen Thomas It is never a good omen when the Chancellor becomes the story rather than the Budget they’ve delivered. What began as a carefully choreographed fiscal event, [...]
OBR chair Richard Hughes resigns after leak ‘inflicted heavy damage’ on watchdog December 1, 2025 The chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) Richard Hughes has resigned after a report provided a damning assessment of management at the top of the fiscal watchdog after it leaked its fiscal report before the Budget. Hughes, who has faced pressure from the government since the leak, said he was taking full responsibility [...]
Banks gear up for boost with loosening of capital rules December 1, 2025 UK banks are gearing up to supercharge the government’s growth agenda with reforms to lenders’ capital requirements set to unlock billions of free cash. The Bank of England is set to take the chop to rules around capital requirements, as part of a “fresh up” of rules in a six-month review to be published on [...]
UK and US agree to zero tariff deal on pharmaceuticals December 1, 2025 The government has agreed to a major deal with Washington that will see the UK become the only country to secure zero import tariffs on pharmaceutical products into the US for at least three years. The deal follows months of negotiations between the government and the Trump administration, after the June trade deal left the [...]
Tulip Siddiq rejects ‘kangaroo court’ conviction December 1, 2025 Former City minister Tulip Siddiq has complained of living in a “Kafkaesque nightmare” after she was handed a two-year jail sentence in a Bangladeshi trial she branded a “kangaroo court”. In a ruling on Monday, a judge in Bangladesh found the Labour MP for Hampstead and Highgate guilty of abusing the “special influence” she had [...]