UK ‘can’t afford’ another decade of lost growth, CBI warn November 21, 2022 The UK “can’t afford a repeat” of its severe economic underperformance since the 2008 financial crisis, the chief of the country’s top business group will warn chancellor Jeremy Hunt today. Responding to last week’s autumn statement, Tony Danker, director general of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), will slam the chancellor for failing to roll [...]
Hunt on course to miss fiscal targets despite £55bn of tightening, Deutsche Bank bet November 20, 2022 Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is on course to miss his fiscal goals due to a weaker growth outlook than forecast by the UK’s budget watchdog, an investment bank has said. According to Sanjay Raja, senior economist at Deutsche Bank, the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) GDP growth forecasts are too optimistic. Last week, the OBR said [...]
Zahawi says government still wants pre-election tax cuts November 20, 2022 The government still wants to cut taxes before the next General Election, Tory party chair Nadhim Zahawi has said. Zahawi said Jeremy Hunt “wouldn’t have a hope in hell” of cutting taxes before inflation dramatically reduces, but that the chancellor’s priority is to slash the tax burden once it has. Hunt moved to hike taxes [...]
Brexit: Barclay denies UK wants ‘Swiss-style’ relationship with EU November 20, 2022 A senior cabinet minister has denied reports the UK wants a closer “Swiss-style” relationship with the EU post-Brexit. Health secretary Steve Barclay has said he doesn’t “recognise” the proposal and that chancellor Jeremy Hunt outlined “our determination to maximise post-Brexit opportunities in pro-growth areas” during his autumn statement on Thursday. The Sunday Times reported today [...]
Rishi Sunak meets President Zelensky in first Ukraine visit November 19, 2022 Rishi Sunak has met with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky in his first visit to Kyiv since becoming Prime Minister. “We discussed the most important issues both for our countries and for global security,” Mr Zelensky wrote on Telegram following the meeting earlier today. “We are stronger and we will achieve the desired results,” he added. [...]
Independent petrol retailers cut prices to lure Brits as wholesale costs ease November 18, 2022 Price competition has returned to the pumps, with independent forecourts offering better petrol deals for Britain's drivers, says the AA.
The Tory knives are out as Jacob Rees-Mogg calls Hunt’s Budget cuts ‘undeliverable’ November 18, 2022 The Chancellor’s spending cuts may prove “undeliverable” as Jeremy Hunt faces criticism from a range of senior Tories for raising taxes as he seeks to rebuild the UK’s battered public finances. Former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg accused the Chancellor of taking the “easy option” in Thursday’s autumn statement rather than bearing down harder on public [...]
Autumn Budget aftermath: Economists warn Hunt piles pressure on ‘squeezed middle’ November 18, 2022 Jeremy Hunt’s autumn statement has piled further pressure on the “squeezed middle” according to analysis from the Resolution Foundation that found tax rises would deliver a 3.7 per cent income hit to typical households. The think tank said the uprating of benefits in line with inflation would make a “huge difference to those on low-to-middle [...]
Hunt plots an ‘OK, but’ budget to spread the pain and fling it to the future November 18, 2022 As Jeremy Hunt competed for headlines with the Australian soap opera Neighbours, its theme song was unwitting inspiration for his financial plan.
Hunt targets highest earners in tax grab as chancellor raises £55bn November 17, 2022 The UK’s highest earners have been targeted as a part of Jeremy Hunt’s tax grab, with the top 45p threshold of Income Tax slashed. The top tax bracket has been reduced from £150,000 to £125,140, while he has also frozen the Income Tax thresholds for the two lower brackets in a stealth hike. Hunt announced [...]