Accountants expect price hikes and job cuts following Budget December 4, 2025 A chartered accountancy body has urged the government to consult on a path to a single VAT rate to simplify and restore business confidence following the Autumn Budget. The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), which represents over 140,000 UK members, reported negative overall sentiment toward the recent Budget. According to exclusive [...]
Starmer blames sweeping tax hikes on Tories December 3, 2025 Keir Starmer blamed sweeping tax hikes at the Budget aimed at funding extra welfare spending and building a larger fiscal buffer on the previous Conservative government’s economic performance. Responding to questions from opposition leader Kemi Badenoch on whether tax rises were necessary, Starmer pointed the finger at a £16bn downgrade to productivity forecasts by the [...]
Paragon Banking chief eyes acquisitions after capital boost December 3, 2025 The boss of Paragon Banking Group has acquisitions in mind after the lender received a major tailwind from regulatory reforms this year. Nigel Terrington has said the loosening of banks’ capital requirement rules, known as MREL (minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities), will open up further growth prospects for mid-cap lenders. The boss [...]
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 [...]
Whitehall was ‘shambolic’ in dealing with collapsed China spy case December 3, 2025 Whitehall officials presided over “shambolic” proceedings in the prosecution of two alleged Chinese spies, a report has suggested, with both government officials and prosecutors coming under fire over the collapse of the case. A report by parliament’s Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy said the collapse of the prosecution against former parliamentary researcher Christopher [...]
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 [...]
Here’s what should really bother Chancellor about the OBR December 3, 2025 An unprecedented row has broken out between the Chancellor and the OBR about short-term productivity forecasts, but what should really worry Reeves is the long-term projections for debt, says Paul Ormerod The row – no, the furore – between the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, and the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is unprecedented. The resignation of [...]
Labour’s war on pensioners punishes people for doing the right thing December 3, 2025 The government wants to mandate how pension funds should invest – a clear breech of fiduciary duty that puts people’s life savings at risk, says Helen Whately and Mark Garnier Labour is waging a war on savers. This should be a big story, but it’s been drowned out in the cacophony of the Budget unravelling. [...]
The public is running out of patience with this Labour government December 3, 2025 People believe freezing income tax thresholds was an unfair breech of Labour’s manifesto and think Kemi Badenoch would make a better Prime Minister, according to new polling for Morning Wire, writes Matthew Lesh The heist looked, for a moment, as though it might succeed. The Treasury had seeded rumours of a looming fiscal black hole [...]