The government will raise corporation tax despite promising not to do so in the mini-budget. Kwasi Kwarteng, who was today sacked as chancellor, promised in the mini-budget last month to keep corporation tax at 19% instead of increasing it to 25% as planned in April. Liz Truss confirmed her government’s change of direction at a […]
Jeremy Hunt has been appointed as Liz Truss’s new chancellor, in a stunning reversal of political fortune and a sign that the beleaguered prime minister wants to reach out to other sections of the Conservative party. Hunt, the former foreign secretary and health secretary, has twice tried unsuccessfully to become Conservative leader. He has been […]
A cryptocurrency firm that employs the former chancellor Philip Hammond as an adviser has withdrawn its application to operate in the UK, after struggling to win approval from the financial regulator. The Guardian revealed earlier this year that Copper Technologies, in which Hammond holds a 0.5% stake, was considering seeking registration in Switzerland rather than […]
Liz Truss has sacked her chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng and will announce plans to raise corporation tax as she abandons key parts of her mini-budget in a bid to reassure the markets. A public statement by the prime minister is expected a 2pm today. The government has been left with little choice but to abandon its […]
Senior Conservatives are holding talks about replacing Liz Truss with a joint ticket of Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt as part of a “coronation” by MPs. Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng, the chancellor, are expected within days to make a humiliating climbdown over corporation tax in an effort to calm the markets and see off a mounting revolt. […]
The sharp rise in borrowing costs since Kwasi Kwarteng’s “mini-budget” means that most of Britain’s warehouses, offices and shopping centres will lose as much as a fifth of their value over the coming two years. The warning came from Goldman Sachs, whose team of analysts sounded the alarm over the outlook for UK commercial properties, […]
Lenders expect the availability of mortgages and consumer and corporate credit to shrink as more people and businesses default on loans. Rising interest rates and the worsening economic outlook began to affect the demand for credit and its availability even before the turmoil unleashed in the markets by the government’s mini-budget at the end of […]
Kwasi Kwarteng is ending his trip to Washington a day early, flying back to London amid speculation that the government is planning another U-turn on its mini-budget. The chancellor, who was due to meet counterparts today at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), confirmed he would head back to London overnight. Treasury sources said Kwarteng was […]
The Bank of England is set to stop its government bond-buying scheme today after attempting to reassure the UK’s financial markets. The Bank launched the unprecedented intervention after the chancellor’s mini-budget caused chaos within the markets, as well as a potential pension pots crisis. It promised to buy up to £65bn in government bonds – […]
Royal Mail has announced it will begin a process to make 5,000 to 6,000 roles redundant by August next year. The announcement, made in a trading update by the postal service’s parent company, has been blamed on industrial action taken by Royal Mail workers, delays in improving productivity and falling parcel volumes. Parent company, International […]