Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber’s theatre empire braced for Reeves’ tax hike Business Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber’s theatre empire has warned it is bracing for the “notable impact” the hike in employer’s National Insurance contributions (NICs) when it comes into force next month. Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in her Budget in October 2024 that NICs would rise by 1.2 per cent from April to 15 per cent in [...]
M&S to invest £95m in staff pay despite higher wage taxes Retail Marks and Spencer will invest £95m into higher pay for its retail staff, despite “cost pressures” from the government. From 1 April, the rate of pay for UK Customer Assistants will increase from £12 to £12.60 per hour, up five per cent year on year and up 26 per cent since 2022. It is higher [...]
Spring Statement 2025: Rachel Reeves should be courageous and favour economics over ideology, says Interactive Investor boss Investing Chancellor Rachel Reeves needs to be “quite courageous” and not “allow ideology to get in the way of economics” when she delivers her Spring Statement on 26 March, the chief executive of Interactive Investor has said. Richard Wilson, speaking on an up-coming episode of City AM‘s Boardroom Uncovered podcast, added that the government’s growth agenda [...]
Checkatrade CEO: ‘My plan to get Britain growing again’ February 20, 2025 The chief executive of Checkatrade has revealed what he would like the government to change in order to boost British businesses and get the country growing again. Speaking during an up-coming episode of City AM’s Boardroom Uncovered interview series, Jambu Palaniappan argued Labour should reform the rules around planning permission to made it easier for [...]
Retail start-up loans rise as entrepreneurs defy UK high street gloom February 5, 2025 Start-up loans for retail businesses rose by a fifth last December, with entrepreneurs still determined despite the gloom surrounding the sector, according to new figures. In December 2023, 32 loans were provided to retail business owners. In December 2024, this rose to 39, an increase of 22 per cent, according to The British Business Bank. [...]
Next CEO backs Lords battle against National Insurance tax rise January 29, 2025 The chief executive of retail giant Next has backed an attempt in the House of Lords to change the planned change to employer’s National Insurance Contributions (NICs). Lord Wolfson has supported amendments to the bill which have been tabled by Baroness Noakes. In Labour’s Budget last Autumn, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said that the government would [...]
JD Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin calls on Starmer to reduce pub taxes January 22, 2025 Wetherspoons chairman Tim Martin has once again called on the government and Keir Starmer to reduce the tax gap between supermarkets and pubs in his company’s latest trading update. Martin said following the government’s decision to hike the national minimum wage, business rates and employers’ national insurance, costs at Wetherspoon will increase by around £60m [...]
Business confidence plunges to lowest level since Liz Truss’s mini-budget January 15, 2025 Rachel Reeves’s tax hikes have pushed business confidence to its lowest level since the wake of Liz Truss’s calamitous mini-Budget, as firms fret over a surge in costs and slowdown in the domestic economy, a closely watched survey has suggested. Concerns over a looming tax bill and a slump in sales caused business confidence to [...]
Most retailers will hike prices in response to Reeves’ NI Budget raid January 15, 2025 Two thirds of CFOs have said their business will be forced to raise prices as a result of higher wage bills, according to a new survey. Around 70 per cent of respondents to the survey, which looked at the attitudes of CFOs at 52 retailers, were “pessimistic” or “very pessimistic” about trading conditions over the [...]
Budget employment law changes fuel increased job insecurity January 7, 2025 Around one in seven workers said that they feel insecure about their job at this time, particularly among those with a lower income, according to new polling