Labour deputy leader hopeful slams Rachel Reeves’ ‘excessive deference’ to OBR September 8, 2025 The prominent backbencher and former transport secretary Louise Haigh, who is a frontrunner to become the deputy leader of the Labour Party, has taken aim at Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ “excessive deference” to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) and adhering to “arbitrary fiscal targets”. Senior officials in the Labour Party are set to agree on [...]
Phoenix Group: FTSE 100 giant changes name to Standard Life September 8, 2025 Pensions giant Phoenix Group is set to change its name to Standard Life as it adopts the name of the brand it acquired seven years ago. It follows widespread speculation that the board had been considering a name change. The firm stated that Standard Life was its most reputable name and that the change would [...]
Challenger banks face ‘profitability trap’ at growth crossroads September 8, 2025 The UK banking sector faces a profitability roadblock that will give the industry’s challengers an “existential” turning point. Fresh data from KPMG suggests the industry’s average return on equity will fall to eight per cent come 2027 down from 13 per cent four years prior. This is set to spark an £11bn reduction in pre-tax [...]
Cross-party politicians urges Starmer to prioritise audit watchdog reform September 8, 2025 The Prime Minister has been urged by 66 MPs and Lords in a cross-party alliance to prioritise the long-overdue Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill that was promised last year. In the King’s Speech in July 2024, the newly elected Labour government unshelved the Bill that would reform the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) into a [...]
Cabinet reshuffle: Lucy Rigby replaces Emma Reynolds as City minister September 6, 2025 Former solicitor general Lucy Rigby has been made Economic Secretary to the Treasury, a role often called the City minister, in the latest development in Starmer’s reshuffle. Rigby replaces Emma Reynolds, a former City lobbyist who had held the role since last July but who has now become environment secretary. In a post on X, Rigby said she was [...]
Nigel Farage: Labour government will collapse in 2027 September 5, 2025 Nigel Farage has set his sights on a General Election in 2027 due to the collapse of the Labour government as he geared up electoral planning at Reform’s party conference. Moving his speech forward three hours to deliver his response to Angela Rayner’s resignation as deputy prime minister, Farage said the government was “deep in [...]
Rayner out: What is happen next for Labour’s cabinet? September 5, 2025 Following Angela Rayner’s resignation from her roles as deputy prime minister, housing secretary, and deputy leader of the Labour Party, what are the following steps to replace her? Rayner admitted to having underpaid stamp duty on her £800,000 seaside flat in Hove, and referred herself to the ethics watchdog Sir Laurie Magnus on Wednesday. On Friday, [...]
Rayner resigns: Legal advice excuse falls flat in tax duty scandal September 5, 2025 Angela Rayner threw her lawyers under the bus over her brewing tax scandal, but the lawyers rebutted, citing the “arrows stuck” in their backs, as experts insisted she shouldn’t have hid “behind legal advice”. When it emerged that Rayner had underpaid £40,000 in tax on her £800,000 property in Hove, it prompted calls for her [...]
Angela Rayner resigns September 5, 2025 Angela Rayner has resigned as deputy prime minister, housing secretary and deputy leader of the Labour Party after being found in breach of the ministerial code. This comes as an inquiry led by ethics watchdog Sir Laurie Magnus, after the now-former deputy prime minister admitted to underpaying stamp duty on her second home in Hove. [...]
London Stock Exchange boss: Fix underinvestment for growth September 5, 2025 The boss of the London Stock Exchange has urged the government to fix investment in capital markets to achieve economic growth. Dame Julia Hoggett, the chief executive of the London Stock Exchange, has backed the new ‘Tell Sid’-style campaign announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves this year in a bid to get Brits investing. Hoggett told [...]