UK economy set to cool as weak consumer confidence damages spending December 1, 2025 The UK economy is expected to cool in 2026, as the softening labour market and subdued consumer confidence caused a drop in household spending. The economy is set to slow 1.0 per cent next year, down from 1.4 per cent in 2025, according to the latest economic outlook from professional services firm KPMG. Meanwhile, unemployment [...]
FCA pressed to investigate Treasury over Budget briefings November 29, 2025 The Financial Conduct Authority has been urged to wade into the row between the Treasury and the Office for Budget Responsibility and investigate government briefings about a so-called £20bn fiscal hole. Scottish National Party leader Stephen Flynn urged the City regulator to investigate Reeves and other Downing Street officials over “deliberately false and misleading” briefings [...]
Business leaders fear more tax rises are on the way November 28, 2025 Businesses leaders are bracing for more tax rises even following another hefty cash raid from Rachel Reeves in her second Autumn Budget. Over two thirds of top bosses have said they fear business leaders will be targeted with more tax hikes even after the Chancellor raised taxes to the tune of £26bn on Wednesday. A [...]
On this day: The resignation of Margaret Thatcher November 28, 2025 On 28 November 1990, Margaret Thatcher left Downing Street for the last time, leaving the United Kingdom in a very,very much better state than when she came there, writes Eliot Wilson I doubt I am alone in remembering the day clearly, though I had only recently turned 13. Margaret Thatcher gave a short and emotional [...]
Budget crackdown on football image rights ‘incredible’, say tax experts November 27, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been accused of disproportionately targeting football for tax rises after the Budget laid out plans for a raid on image rights earnings. Top footballers benefit from setting up image rights companies which are taxed at a lower rate than their salaries, but the government says it will legislate “to ensure that [...]
‘Fiscal fiction’: IFS challenges Reeves’ tax measures November 27, 2025 The Chancellor may need to come back for more tax rises at a future Budget, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) which warned much of the headroom Rachel Reeves carved out for herself relied on “near heroic restraint” on departmental spending in an election year. Helen Miller, the think tank’s director, said that [...]
‘Deceiving’ Budget: Reeves to delay debt ‘repair’ amid interest rate hold fears November 27, 2025 A left-leaning think tank has sounded the alarm on the the delay of the “repair job” for public finances after Rachel Reeves increased short-term borrowing levels to pay for higher welfare spending next year. The Resolution Foundation, which was previously headed by Treasury minister Torsten Bell, suggested Rachel Reeves’ Budget was “deceiving” by back-loading consolidation [...]
UK remains in ‘weak fiscal position’ after Budget November 27, 2025 The UK remains in a weak fiscal position after Wednesday’s Budget despite the Chancellor launching an historic fiscal consolidation in an attempt to shore up the public finances and avoid another tax raising budget, several top economists have warned. Rachel Reeves chose to hike taxes by £26bn via a vast combination of sector-specific levies, pension [...]
Budget 2025: Rachel Reeves announces £26bn tax raid November 26, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced an avalanche of tax rises on the wealthy and on working people, adding up to £26bn to fund extra spending over the next five years, as she vowed to make the country more “secure”. Her biggest announcement included freezing income tax and national insurance thresholds until 2031 to raise £11bn [...]
Autumn Budget: Reeves targets job market with skills package November 26, 2025 Rachel Reeves has used today’s Autumn Budget to unveil a sweeping £1.5bn skills package aimed at tackling the UK’s entrenched labour shortages and sluggish productivity. The Chancellor said the country “cannot compete without investing in our people”, pitching the reforms as central to her long-term economic renewal plan. The measures represent the biggest shake-up of [...]