Spring Statement 2025: Markets and bonds tread water ahead of ‘testing day’ March 26, 2025 Markets and bonds were relatively flat on Wednesday morning as analysts predicted Rachel Reeves’ Spring Statement would mark a “testing day”. The FTSE 100 had minor gains following market open, with Marks and Spencer leading the index’s biggest risers. The mid-cap FTSE 250 had a slight uptick, led by a surge in retailer Ocado after [...]
Spring Statement 2025: More welfare cuts to come March 26, 2025 MPs and voters will “hear more” from the Chancellor on welfare cuts at the Spring Statement, the defence secretary has said. John Healey has appeared to confirm that further cuts to welfare spending will be required because the budget watchdog has said previously-announced measures will not save the £5bn a year expected by 2030. The [...]
Labour’s attempt to use AI to power budget cuts is damaging. Here’s why March 26, 2025 The UK government is beginning to introduce AI tools for deep research, framing the technology as a tool to reduce costs and improve efficiency. Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey announced on Tuesday that Rachel Reeves needs AI to ‘move the needle’ on economic growth. Yet, tying AI to Reeves’ budget cuts risks discouraging its [...]
Mid-sized firms ‘considering leaving UK’ as pressure on Reeves heats up March 26, 2025 Around a third of mid-sized businesses are considering leaving the UK in the next two years, a new survey has suggested, as Chancellor Rachel Reeves faces intense pressure to make business-friendly announcements at the Spring Statement. The Treasury is set to unlock fresh funding for the construction sector with up to £600m to be spent [...]
UK inflation undershoots expectations in February March 26, 2025 Inflation hit 2.8 per cent in the year to February, pointing to a fragile UK economy as Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to deliver her Spring Statement this afternoon. The Bank of England last week held interest rates at 4.5 per cent as inflation has remained high amid escalating trade tensions and incoming tax rises. Now [...]
Spring Statement 2025 LIVE March 26, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has presented her Spring Statement in the House of Commons this afternoon. The headline of the release was the change in the projections by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which has slashed its growth forecast in half to one per cent as Chancellor Rachel Reeves said she was “not happy” [...]
If the world really has changed, Chancellor, then drop your tax hikes March 26, 2025 Rachel Reeves has one of the most demanding, high profile and exhausting jobs in the country, and so – at the very least – we should forgive her for taking some freebie tickets to a Sabrina Carpenter concert. She’s had very few good weeks since entering office and the least she deserves is a good [...]
Spring Statement: Reeves should abolish the OBR March 26, 2025 By strengthening the OBR, Reeves has created severe difficulties for herself. Vital decisions about our economic future should be made by politicians, not unelected quangocrats, says Paul Ormerod Later today we will know for certain what is in Rachel Reeves’ Spring statement, a budget to all intents and purposes. But as is usually the case [...]
Spring Statement 2025: £2.2bn defence and weapons boost, Reeves to unveil March 25, 2025 Rachel Reeves is set to unveil a £2.2bn boost for the UK’s defence spending at the Spring Statement, including cash to kit out Royal Navy ships with laser weapons. The Chancellor vowed to deliver “security and national renewal” but warned “we have to move quickly in a changing world” amid rising uncertainty over future European [...]
Once upon a time, Spring Statement day was fun March 25, 2025 Once upon a time, Spring Statement day was fun. Now, as an early-stage entrepreneur, it just fills me with dread, writes Michael Martins in today's Notebook.