UK services sector ‘driving force’ behind growth, BDO says April 7, 2025 The UK’s services sector is the “driving force” behind marginal growth gains, research by the consultancy BDO has suggested, as other sectors’ performance has become increasingly lacklustre. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been urged to ease cost pressures on firms as her £25bn national insurance tax hikes, coming into effect this week, have weighed down on [...]
Why the Trump tariffs have left the UK scrambling… April 2, 2025 Nature abhors a vacuum, or so they, or potentially Aristotle, once said. During weeks like this, it feels more accurate to say it’s the news which is doing the abhorring. Speculation has been, understandably, rampant as to the nature, variety, and impact of the tariffs the US President Donald Trump is expected to introduce on [...]
UK economy facing recession risk as Spring Statement looms March 17, 2025 Britain’s fragile jobs market indicates that a recession is looming for the UK economy, a leading think tank has warned. Chancellor Rachel Reeves defended the government’s economic record in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Monday, claiming most major economies around the world are facing lower growth than expected. But the Resolution Foundation said the UK [...]
President Trump threatens to double tax rates for foreign firms January 22, 2025 Donald Trump has threatened to double tax rates for foreign nationals and companies in the US in what he said was a bid to hit back at “discriminatory” duties on American firms. The President set out a memo on his ‘America first’ trade policy on Monday which referred to an almost 100-year old element of [...]
PMQs: Reeves ‘coming back for more’ in next Budget, Badenoch warns December 4, 2024 Chancellor Rachel Reeves will be “coming back for more” borrowing and further tax rises in her next Budget, according to Tory leader Kemi Badenoch. During a feisty PMQs the Conservative leader railed against the Prime Minister who she said “failed to repeat the Chancellor’s pledge of no more borrowing and no more taxes”. After referencing [...]
Public spending to ‘boost growth’ next year, but inflation also set to spike December 4, 2024 In its latest economic outlook, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) projected that growth would pick up to 1.7 per cent in 2025.
Questions grow over triple-lock as number of people on state pension climbs by 220,000 November 29, 2024 According to data from DWP, 12.9m people were receiving the benefit in May 2024, a 1.7 per cent increase on the previous year.
A warning to Reeves: These tax rises will damage UK competitiveness October 22, 2024 Not only is the UK tax burden at record levels, but we are raising money in a more damaging way than our competitors. And the Budget could be about to make things even worse, says Daniel Herring Next week, Rachel Reeves needs to try not to make the UK’s tax system worse. Yesterday the US-based [...]
‘The biggest barrier to growth’: Businesses set out plan to fix productivity puzzle October 11, 2024 Some of the UK’s most high-profile businesses have set out a roadmap to improve productivity growth, including reforms which could boost the economy by £82bn over the next five years. The Building Back Britain Commission, which included representatives from Vodafone, PIC and British Land, looked at productivity across the entire country, finding five key areas [...]
UK economy gets another growth upgrade but OECD warns on ‘sticky’ inflation September 25, 2024 Chancellor Rachel Rachel said she "welcomed" the upgraded projection, but said there is "more to do".