Reeves denies authorising Budget leaks December 9, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has rejected accusations that she authorised leaks of the Budget to media outlets in the run-up to her statement, which led to sharp turns in bond markets and worsening business confidence. During Treasury Questions on Tuesday afternoon, Reeves was asked by her counterpart Mel Stride whether she authorised or allowed confidential details [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Unilever demerger; House prices hit record high December 5, 2025 Good morning and welcome back to the Morning Wire liveblog. The Autumn Budget started nearly an hour earlier than expected on 26 November after the fiscal watchdog leaked its forecasts for the UK and with it all the Labour government’s economic policy for the next year. But start as you mean to end rings true [...]
Construction in worst downturn for five-and-a-half years December 4, 2025 The construction sector suffered its worst downturn in output for five and a half years last month, new figures have shown, in a warning to the Labour government as it hopes to build 1.5m homes by 2030. A monthly S&P Global survey showed that the decline in output rapidly accelerated over the month, with the [...]
Equity fund outflows hit fresh record as Budget uncertainty triggered UK selloff December 4, 2025 Equity funds have suffered their deepest and most prolonged bout of outflows on record with investors pulling more than £10bn in the past six months, fresh figures have revealed. UK-focused funds were the hardest-hit in November after haemorrhaging almost £847m, according to data compiled by global funds network Calastone, with analysts pointing to protracted Budget [...]
Businesses shed staff at ‘fastest rate since February’ December 3, 2025 Businesses laid off staff at the fastest rate in nine months as growth in the UK economy suffered a “renewed slowdown”, new data has indicated. S&P Global’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for November suggested growth marginally changed over the month, with researchers pointing the finger at pre-Budget speculation keeping bosses on edge. The composite PMI [...]
FCA chief ducks committing to investigating Treasury briefings December 3, 2025 The boss of the City watchdog appeared to skirt committing to investigating Treasury briefings when pressed on the Labour government’s “possible market abuse” on Wednesday morning. Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority, has been lobbied by the Conservatives and other opponents to the Labour government to look into the rogue briefings on [...]
AI powers UK’s startup surge as founder numbers soar December 3, 2025 While Britain is trudging through another tax-heavy Budget, LinkedIn data has revealed signs of a founder boom, with AI doing much of the heavy lifting. As Rachel Reeves attempted to boost startup and scale-up appetite in her Budget, LinkedIn revealed that the number of UK professionals adding ‘founder’ to their profile has jumped 69 per [...]
OBR chief hits out at ‘misconceptions’ in Treasury briefings December 2, 2025 A top economist at the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has defended a decision to release a letter that contradicted anonymous Treasury briefings in media reports, adding that details in reports were “damaging” to the fiscal watchdog. David Miles, a member of the Budget Responsibility Committee (BRC), told MPs on the Treasury Select Committee that [...]
Businesses left ‘in limbo’ during Budget speculation as bosses feel bruised December 2, 2025 The UK’s private sector was left in a state of “limbo” amid months of Budget speculation leading to delayed investment plans, a leading survey has found, underscoring claims that the government misled the public and businesses over tax rises and fiscal constraints. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI)’s monthly private sector survey has revealed how [...]
Voters blame Labour for tax hikes amid gloomy outlook December 2, 2025 A majority of voters believe that the raft of tax-raising measures unveiled at last week’s Budget prove that Labour has failed to fix the public finances after more than year in office. Senior Labour officials including Chancellor Rachel Reeves have suggested that the government faced constraints on public finances as a result of international trade [...]