Cut interest rates by 25 basis points, Shadow MPC says November 5, 2025 Top economists on City AM’s Shadow Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) have called for interest rates to be cut to 3.75 per cent in a narrow 5-4 vote. Economists from academia, business and City giants have said that the UK’s weakening demand and easing price pressures suggested the Bank of England should look to cut interest [...]
JD Wetherspoon ‘more cautious’ on outlook due to Budget uncertainty November 5, 2025 JD Wetherspoon has said it has become “more cautious in its outlook” as Britain’s best-known pub chain braces for the prospect of further tax hikes at the Budget later this month. The firm, which operates around 800 pubs across the UK, reported a 3.7 per cent rise in like-for-like turnover for the 14 weeks to [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Wetherspoons boss’ Budget warning; M&S takes cyber hit November 5, 2025 Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. If you need a clear sign that there is an AI bubble, look no further. American tech stocks fell sharply on Tuesday after a hedge fund manager famed for predicting the Global Financial Crisis revealed he had taken out a billion-dollar bet against some of the world’s [...]
Do you need to contribute more to your pension? November 5, 2025 The introduction of auto enrolment has drastically changed the retirement outcomes for millions of Brits, increasing private sector employees’ pension contributions. The move, which came into force in 2012, allowed savers who joined the workforce too late to benefit from the gold plated, inflation protected defined benefit schemes to secure a consistent pension stream, without [...]
Left and rightwing think tanks join to call for ‘pro-growth’ tax reform November 5, 2025 Several think tanks from across the political divide have joined forces to call for sweeping tax reforms in a report that seeks to prioritise productivity growth and fairness in the wider system. Economists and policy officials from the left-leaning IPPR, the right-leaning Centre for Policy Studies and the likes of the Adam Smith Institute and [...]
Reeves’ deregulation agenda won’t help growth this parliament, economist warns November 5, 2025 Rachel Reeves’ deregulation agenda is unlikely to make any improvement to economic growth before the end of this parliament, a leading economist has warned, in the latest sign the government’s growth mission is running out of steam. Professor Stephen Millard, Deputy Director of the National Institute for Social and Economic Research (NIESR) said it would [...]
Ex-CEO faces trial for allegedly urging MPs to block Chinese-backed acquisition November 5, 2025 The High Court is set to hear a case over an allegation against a former interim CEO of an aerospace firm who is accused of secretly lobbying MPs and the UK government to sabotage a Chinese-backed deal. The case follows a national security review by the UK government into a deal that could have led [...]
Rachel Reeves blames everyone – apart from herself November 5, 2025 The Chancellor’s speech yesterday was really very odd indeed. It benefited from all the gravitas of a Downing Street address to the nation, but was remarkably thin on substance. She created an atmosphere of high drama but left her audience with nothing but questions to which she was unable or unwilling to provide an answer. [...]
Autumn Budget: Reeves must cure British ‘pessimism’ disease November 5, 2025 Ahead of the Autumn Budget, City Reporter Samuel Norman sits down with top industry names for a Budget Briefing. This week, chief executive of Peel Hunt urges Reeves to use the Budget to start the cure for British pessimism. As Rachel Reeves ruminates over which tax prescription to write to fill her fiscal black hole, [...]
Lawyers warn Reeves: Don’t destroy £60bn industry over LLPs gambit November 4, 2025 The legal industry has slammed Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ proposed tax hike on LLPs, saying the move “could harm one of the UK’s most globally competitive sectors.” As she aims to fill the fiscal black hole, Reeves is reportedly targeting limited liability partnerships (LLPs) for a tax raid for the first time. The LLP model, used [...]