The Budget lever Healey could pull to tax family business succession Tax Thousands of family businesses could face being priced out of passing their business down to their offspring should Chancellor John Healey to use his maiden Budget to clamp down on a little-known rule making it easier for firms to transfer ownership. Treasury officials have been mulling an overhaul of so-called company distribution rules that would [...]
Healey expected to set £15bn fiscal headroom with £5bn in tax hikes Economics John Healey will set his fiscal headroom at a minimum of £15bn, City analysts have predicted, although closer attention will be paid to the Chancellor’s spending restraint. Economists at major banks are anticipating Healey’s buffer against the main fiscal rule to shrink slightly. The borrowing rule states that day-to-day government spending should at least match projected [...]
Budget 2026: Will the real John Healey please stand up? Politics John Healey is set to deliver his first Budget although business chiefs, trade unionists and bond traders are still unsure of what to expect. Maurício Alencar reports on whether he can assert his authority on Wednesday. In the period between Sir Keir Starmer leaving Number 10 and Andy Burnham taking over, ambitious Labour figures vied [...]
Does the government realise the rich aren’t leaving on a whim? October 27, 2026 From experience advising high net worth individuals, the “exodus of wealth” is rarely a decision taken lightly, writes Yorke Eaton.
Financial advisers feel the effects of Reeves’ final tax raid as Healey’s Budget looms October 26, 2026 Financial advisers are feeling the effects of Rachel Reeves’ final Budget, as families brace for billions of pounds of tax rises regardless of what chancellor John Healey announces at the despatch box later this week. From April next year, the sweeping shake up to the tax system announced by Reeves in 2025 will come into [...]
The Big Bang transformed the City of London – 40 years on, can it happen again? October 26, 2026 The City of London was changed forever by a sweeping package of deregulation in 1986, known as the Big Bang. Forty years on – and facing existential threats – can the Square Mile reinvent itself again? When Alasdair Haynes left work as a young options trader on Friday 24th October 1986, he didn’t know what [...]
Tech bosses warn Chancellor UK risks surrendering to foreign AI giants October 26, 2026 Britain risks becoming dangerously dependent on foreign tech giants unless the government develops a comprehensive strategy for its own AI, industry leaders have warned the Chancellor ahead of his Budget on Wednesday. UKAI, which represents more than 270 AI businesses, has urged John Healey to commit substantial funding to a national sovereign AI strategy, warning [...]
Rolls-Royce, Babcock shares jump on Healey’s defence borrowing plan October 26, 2026 Defence stocks were handed a boost on Monday morning following reports that Chancellor John Healey was set to borrow billions to invest in the military at the forthcoming Budget. Rolls-Royce was up nearly two per cent in early trading to 1,184.40p, while Melrose was up 1.4 per cent. Both are key players in aerospace and [...]
Healey’s startup adviser quits ahead of Budget over ‘sideshow’ treatment of entrepreneurs October 25, 2026 The Treasury’s entrepreneurship adviser is stepping down after accusing ministers of treating Britain’s fastest-growing companies as a “sideshow” while directing taxpayer money towards traditional industries. Alex Depledge, appointed by former chancellor Rachel Reeves in June 2025, will leave the role on Thursday, a day after John Healey delivers his first Budget. “Keeping scale-ups on the [...]
Burnham sparks Brexit row over return to EU free movement October 25, 2026 Andy Burnham has been accused of “betraying Brexit Britain” and threatening to hand control of the country’s borders back to Brussels after suggesting the UK could restore freedom of movement with the European Union. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage branded the remarks a betrayal of voters, while the Conservatives vowed to oppose any attempt to [...]