UK faces ‘make or break moment’ in Budget as Swinney calls for spending October 20, 2024 Scotland’s First Minister will use a speech on Monday to urge the Chancellor to increase spending, as he said the Budget presents a “make or break moment” for the UK. Rachel Reeves will present the new Labour Government’s tax and spending plans on October 30, as she seeks to close a £40bn gap in the [...]
Reeves to hike tax on UK founders looking to sell October 19, 2024 Chancellor Rachel Reeves is reportedly plotting to hike taxes for entrepreneurs selling their businesses as part of her strategy to plug a £40bn fiscal “black hole”. In her upcoming Budget, Reeves is considering cutting a policy known as the business asset disposal relief, according to Bloomberg. The tax relief currently allows entrepreneurs to pay a [...]
London Film Festival cancels far-right documentary screening over safety concern October 19, 2024 The BFI London Film Festival (LFF) has cancelled a screening of a documentary about the far-right over “safety” concerns. Undercover: Exposing The Far Right, which uses hidden cameras to cover far-right figures across the UK and Europe, was to be part of the 68th festival over the weekend, but has been withdrawn. Kristy Matheson, director [...]
UK needs ‘more diplomacy’ with China, says Lammy October 19, 2024 The UK approach to China needs “more diplomacy, not less”, the Foreign Secretary has said on his first official visit to the country. David Lammy said the Government would bring “consistency” to relations with China, adding there had not been “sufficient contact” between London and Beijing under his predecessors, particularly on human rights issues. His [...]
Why do economists think public investment is good for growth? October 19, 2024 As the Budget approaches it seems clear that the government is preparing to ramp up public investment.
Inflation, interest rates and tax: What happened in the economy this week? October 18, 2024 The health of the UK economy is attracting more and more attention as the Budget draws nearer, and there was plenty for commentators to digest this week. Here’s a brief recap: What to make of this week’s news? First, the danger of inflationary persistence seems to be diminishing, with noticeable progress on both wage growth [...]
Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group backs N Brown takeover amid Mulberry pursuit October 18, 2024 Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group has backed the £191m proposed takeover of JD Williams-owner N Brown and announced the sale of its 20 per cent stake in the company for £38m. The retail empire, which includes Sports Direct and House of Fraser, holds nearly 95,000,000 shares in the Manchester business and will sell them for 40p [...]
Monthly UK insolvencies remain stubbornly high ahead of Budget October 18, 2024 The release noted that monthly insolvency numbers so far in 2024 have been similar to 2023, which saw the highest annual number of insolvencies since 1993.
London prime property prices steady despite Budget and non-dom uncertainty October 18, 2024 Property prices in London’s prime residential market have shown resilience despite buyer jitters ahead of the much-discussed Autumn Budget. While speculation on what taxes Reeves might increase has reached fever pitch – and those taxes are likely to affect the property market – prices picked up in the third quarter. There was a 1.8 per [...]
St James’s Place: Analysts back UK’s largest wealth manager October 18, 2024 By the end of the quarter, funds under management had swelled to £184.4bn, up from £181.9bn the quarter before and also ahead of consensus.
