Barclays takes shot at tax speculation as UK growth forecast cut April 28, 2026 Barclays has taken a shot at the wave of tax speculation surrounding the industry as the bank trimmed its growth output for the year ahead. Fears the banking sector might be targeted for a cash grab have gathered pace following the war in Iran, amid concerns over mounting cost pressures. The Middle East conflict is [...]
Can AI end the female admin trap? April 2, 2026 Large language models and agentic AI are exceptionally good at precisely the kind of labour that women have been doing for free for decades. So could technology be an unlikely source of female liberation? Asks Eliza Filby Have you heard of the so-called pink tax? It’s the rather cringe name given to the added cost [...]
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 [...]
Spring Statement Live: UK growth cut for 2026 but Reeves touts future forecasts March 3, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM liveblog. Rachel Reeves delivered her Spring Statement today, as the Office for Budget Responsibility published its updated forecasts for the years ahead. The Chancellor was handed quite a hefty blow with the UK’s growth estimate for 2026 slashed to 1.1 per cent from 1.4 per cent the year prior. [...]
Private sector axes more jobs amid Reeves’ tax and wage pressures February 20, 2026 The UK’s private sectors culled jobs for the seventeenth consecutive month in February led by a significant drop in the services sector as businesses were still digesting the impact of Labour’s 2024 Autumn Budget. The latest flash Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) from S&P Global described the rate of job shedding in February as at a [...]
Rachel Reeves warned ‘dysfunctional’ fiscal rules are hammering economy February 19, 2026 Rachel Reeves has been dealt a scathing assessment of her economic policy by a top think tank, which likened her approach to a driver who was “watching the speedometer” while ignoring other conditions. The Chancellor is facing calls to scrap the self-imposed fiscal rules that prevent her from borrowing to pay for day-to-day spending and [...]
Reeves told City at ‘critical juncture’ after claims of golden age January 25, 2026 Rachel Reeves has been handed a firm warning that Britain’s financial ecosystem is facing a “critical juncture” even after the Chancellor touted a “golden age” of opportunity for the City. The Chancellor faces a call to action following a report from lobby group TheCityUK and Big Four consultancy giant PwC revealing the “hard truth” that [...]
Nigel Farage: Reform will tax the banks even if they don’t like it January 22, 2026 Nigel Farage has confirmed Reform will slap a tax on the UK’s banking giants in the latest dramatic escalation of his party’s tensions with the City. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in the Davos, Farage said: “This will be tough for banks to accept but I am sorry – the drain on public finances [...]
UK economy showing signs of ‘zombie apocalypse,’ says think tank January 5, 2026 The UK economy faces a “zombie apocalypse” in the coming year, as years of tough trading conditions force thousands of unproductive firms to the wall, an influential left-leaning think tank has predicted. The Resolution Foundation forecasts a “triple whammy” of multi-year increases in interest rates, energy prices and the minimum wage will lead to the [...]
Labour ‘quietly hammering’ workers as pensioners benefit, think tank warns January 2, 2026 The Labour government is “quietly hammering” workers following the Autumn Budget’s stealth tax raid while pensioners and those on benefits are set to enjoy a jump in income, a think tank has said. In the November Budget, Rachel Reeves extended the freeze on income tax thresholds until 2031 – a move which is viewed as [...]