Berenberg: Labour welfare row will lead to tax hikes and higher interest rates June 26, 2025 Divisive party politics at the top of the Labour government stand to prevent the Bank of England from making further interest rate cuts, given struggles to curb spending, a leading City broker has warned. The government is embroiled in another row over spending cuts, as £4.8bn in welfare budget savings look set to be watered down following a [...]
Week in Business: Is the jobs market in crisis? June 26, 2025 Entry level and graduate jobs are down while AI is coming for professional roles, all while businesses contend with tax hikes and red tape.
Big Four: US fines Deloitte, PwC and EY over exam cheating June 26, 2025 The US accountancy regulator has fined the Dutch arms of Deloitte, PwC, and EY $8.5m over 'widespread exam misconduct'.
Have developed countries discovered the ideal corporate tax rate? June 26, 2025 International tax was once a veritable jungle of exotic regimes, but now many jurisdictions seem to have settled on a natural equilibrium of around 25 per cent, says Tim Sarson An interesting and rather consequential piece of tax policy from the new German coalition government might have slipped under your radar recently – they are [...]
Big Four slash graduate jobs as AI takes on entry level work June 23, 2025 The UK’s Big Four accountancy firms are cutting hundreds of jobs and pulling back sharply on graduate recruitment, as artificial intelligence (AI) begins replacing the junior roles once filled by school and university graduates. Deloitte, EY, KMPG and PwC – which cumulatively employ around 100,000 people across the UK – have all stripped back early-career [...]
UK government’s love/hate relationship with consultancy firms June 20, 2025 When it comes to calling in the consultants, the UK government has had leading firms on speed dial over the years. But cuts are on top of Labour's agenda
Government borrowing surges in May to fund Labour’s spending June 20, 2025 Government borrowing in May surged to £17.7bn, official data has shown, reflecting the government’s need for cash to fund Labour’s spending splurge. This represented the second-highest May borrowing figure since records began more than 30 years ago and higher than the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecast. Fresh data published by the Office for National [...]
AIM turns 30: Delistings, doubt and a dose of optimism June 19, 2025 AIM turns 30 today, but birthday celebrations are bound to be overshadowed by swathes of bleak data on the market’s performance. London’s junior stock market has had a woeful period, with projections indicating the index will shrink by a fifth as a result of delisting plans. The number of companies listed on the City’s Alternative [...]
AIM boss: Inheritance tax sums don’t add up June 19, 2025 As AIM celebrates its 30th anniversary the market’s boss is eying a crucial birthday present from the Treasury: tax clarity. AIM shareholders were thrust into the tax spotlight last month after a leaked memo revealed Angela Rayner proposed Chancellor Rachel Reeves slap a series of taxes savers. Scrapping the inheritance tax exemption for AIM shares [...]
HS2: Can it be pulled back from the brink? June 18, 2025 For anyone who has followed the debacle surrounding HS2, the transport secretary’s scathing verdict on Wednesday will come as no surprise. The “appalling mess” of HS2, as Heidi Alexander put it, means there is “no route” to delivering the scheme on time and on budget. Shock. HS2’s costs were already known to have exceeded more [...]