London listings fall to lowest levels since 2023 Markets London listings fell to the lowest levels seen since 2023, recording just one public offering in the third quarter as the IPO drought continues. The quarter’s sole transaction was the AIM listing of 1947 Oil & Gas plc, which raised just £29.8m, marking it as the quietest period since the fourth quarter of 2023 where [...]
Healey told to cut employment taxes and energy bills to boost business Economics Britain’s biggest business lobby group has urged John Healey to cut employment taxes and energy bills in his first Budget, warning that further tax rises risk choking off investment and jobs. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) called on the Chancellor to give firms “breathing space” at the Budget on 28 October, as businesses grapple [...]
Business feels ‘beaten up’, Burnham ally says Economics Lord Jim O’Neill, one of Andy Burnham’s closest allies, has warned businesses feel “beaten up” by government as he urged the Prime Minister to spare British companies from another punishing raid at the Budget. Speaking to a group of MPs at the Treasury Select Committee, O’Neill doubled down on his opposition to capital gains tax [...]
Dan Neidle: too many of our taxes make no sense October 14, 2026 We spend a lot of time talking about tax as a revenue raiser and far less time asking whether the taxes themselves make any economic sense. We rarely think seriously about how the design of the tax system itself can encourage or inhibit growth, says Dan Neidle Britain’s demographics are brutal. Spending on health and [...]
Healey rejects calls to equalise capital gains and income tax rates October 13, 2026 Chancellor John Healey has reportedly rejected calls by senior Labour figures to raise capital gains tax to the same levels as income tax, after warnings that an increase would harm Britain’s appeal to investors. Several senior cabinet ministers have in recent months called for capital gains tax (CGT) to be equalised with income tax in [...]
Premier Inn owner Whitbread hits out at ‘destructive’ activist investor October 13, 2026 Premier Inn owner Whitbread has hit out at the activist investor seeking a seat on its board, claiming its proposals would be a “complete waste” of time and money. The FTSE 100 hospitality firm wrote to shareholders on Tuesday urging them to reject the plans put forward by Corvex Asset Management, one of the group’s [...]
BP braces for hit of up to $4.5bn in pivot from green energy October 13, 2026 BP is bracing for a hit of up to $4.5bn after a hefty write-down in its energy transition unit, as the firm pivots away from aggressive green targets. The FTSE 100 energy giant told markets on Tuesday its third quarter update – set for the end of the month – would include a post-tax impairment [...]
Closer to Europe? Fine but please don’t align us down October 13, 2026 Instead of rehashing old Brexit debates, the UK and EU should collaborate on mutual recognition and adopt the best elements of each other’s private market frameworks to help start-ups raise capital more efficiently, says Kieron O’Brien “Come back to the EU anytime”, French minister Roland Lescure said last week, adding that if Britain wanted to [...]
Zack Polanski’s Greens are a toxic mix of hatred and economic illiteracy October 12, 2026 The Green party’s antisemitic ‘Zionism is racism’ motion puts them bizarrely at odds with the Palestinian Liberation Organization, which recognises the state of Israel. And on the economy, their policies are simply delusional, says Eliot Wilson At its recent conference in Brighton, the Green Party of England and Wales affirmed a set of policies which, [...]
As it happened: FTSE 100 gains; oil rises despite Trump’s Russian diesel deal October 12, 2026 Welcome back to City AM‘s FTSE 100 live blog. The UK’s blue-chip index is set to make gains on Monday morning, picking up where Friday’s rally left off. Oil prices fell in early trading, as Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil – dipped below $104 per barrel following President Trump’s plans to import [...]