Reeves eyeing spending cuts as fiscal walls cave in March 10, 2025 Rachel Reeves is expected to take the chop to spending in her upcoming Spring Statement, as the government’s fiscal headroom disappears. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is set to show a depletion in the Chancellor’s headway, according to BNP Paribas economists. This leaves the government with little options beside further tax hikes or spending [...]
Households close to pylons to get £250 off annual energy bills March 10, 2025 Households situated near new pylons will receive hundreds of pounds off their annual energy bills as part of a government overhaul of the UK’s planning system. Proposals laid out this week will see residents within half a kilometre of new or upgraded electricty systems gain access to a bill discount scheme allowing them £2,500 off [...]
Government to hit regulators with performance targets to drive innovation March 10, 2025 Regulators will be slapped with new performance targets in an effort to stimulate technological innovation and drive investment in the UK. According to Lord Patrick Vallance, the science minister, the benchmarks will be designed to accelerate innovation. Lord Vallance has suggested that this drive for innovation could result in commercial delivery drones, self-driving vehicles, and [...]
Government unveils £23m boost for telecoms March 10, 2025 The UK government has announced a £23m investment in telecoms research and development, aiming to strengthen connectivity across key industries like AI, cloud computing, and agriculture. The funding forms part of science and technology secretary Peter Kyle’s plans to accelerate the deployment of next generation telecoms technologies. He is expected to confirm the funding during [...]
More than 300,000 businesses plan job cuts as Reeves’ Budget starts to bite March 10, 2025 More than 300,000 businesses are expected to lay off workers, as a flurry of data reveals a jobs market slowdown following the government’s Budget measures on employment. The £25bn rise in national insurance contributions (NICs) announced by the Chancellor in October is set to kick in next month, while businesses are also reportedly spooked by [...]
Employment reforms “highly damaging” to investment, warns CBI chief March 7, 2025 The government’s proposed reforms to employment law would be “highly damaging” to business investment in the UK, according to CBI president Rupert Soames. Writing in The Times, Soames argued that this week’s U-turns on more controversial aspects of the legislation – from changes to statutory sick pay, to tweaks to protections for agency workers and [...]
Week in Business: Who will Rachel Reeves blame for higher taxes in Spring Statement? March 6, 2025 City AM Editor Christian May looks at the biggest business stories in his weekly video, today focusing on the UK economy and upcoming Spring Statement.
Chancellor facing £10bn headache in Spring Statement March 6, 2025 Rachel Reeves faces a tax and spend nightmare at the Spring Statement, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think tank. In a lengthy report, the IFS says Reeves is snookered between the realities of a bleak economic environment and her own self-imposed fiscal rules, resulting in what could amount to a £10bn tax [...]
Rachel Reeves calls for action to break down gender barriers to boost growth March 6, 2025 Ahead of International Women’s Day, chancellor Rachel Reeves has called for urgent action to dismantle barriers preventing women from reaching leadership positions. Her comments follow the release of new research from Vodafone, which found that over a third of women still see gender as a barrier to career progression. “The UK is leading the charge [...]
Reeves is gearing up for a blame game March 6, 2025 You can hear the spin a mile away; as the Chancellor’s team prepares for the Spring Statement the groundwork is being laid. Despite the fact that the inevitable consequences of the government’s multi-billion pound tax raid on businesses have been clear for months, with economic growth suffocated, sources close to the Chancellor are telling the [...]