Britain’s tax wedge jumped 2.45 points in a year — 16 times the OECD average — as Reeves’s employer NI hike and frozen thresholds punish SMEs and shrink payrolls. Read more: UK employers saddled with sharpest tax rise in developed world, OECD finds
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Founders and advisers warn the latest hike in Business Asset Disposal Relief to 18% is squeezing entrepreneurs and pushing Britain’s homegrown talent abroad. Read more: BADR hike branded a ‘tax-grabbing assault’ as Britain’s founders eye the exit
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Ceramics and brickmakers left out in the cold as GMB rounds on Whitehall’s flagship industrial package Read more: GMB union attacks government for ‘disgracefully ignoring’ UK’s gas-intensive manufacturers
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Whitehall drafts emergency plans as the ongoing Iran conflict threatens UK carbon dioxide supplies, with potential knock-on effects for meat producers, brewers and SME food businesses this summer. Read more: Supermarket shelves face summer gaps as Iran war threatens UK’s CO2 lifeline
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Britain’s first nationally significant AI data centre at Wapseys Wood would be powered by a gas turbine, fuelling concern that the UK’s AI ambitions are clashing with climate goals. Read more: Britain’s first major AI data centre sparks net zero clash as gas power plans revealed
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The IMF has slashed Britain’s growth forecast by 0.5 points — the sharpest G7 downgrade — as Rachel Reeves arrives in Washington with inflation nearing 4%. Read more: Reeves flies into Washington as IMF brands Britain the G7’s biggest loser
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HSBC chiefs warn the Iran conflict is denting global confidence, as UK bosses from Castore to Virgin Atlantic flag soaring costs, supply chain chaos and inflation risks. Read more: HSBC warns Iran war is shaking global confidence as UK business leaders count the cost
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OpenAI has signed a lease on an 88,500 sq ft King’s Cross office with capacity for 544 staff, signalling plans to more than double its UK workforce even after scrapping its Tyneside data centre project. Read more: OpenAI doubles down on London with first permanent office despite Stargate U-turn
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British business confidence has plunged to its lowest since the first Covid lockdown as the Iran war drives up energy costs and forces firms to shelve hiring and investment plans. Read more: UK business confidence crashes to Covid-era lows as Iran conflict forces firms into survival mode
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The OECD has called on Chancellor Rachel Reeves to launch an in-depth review of Britain’s “inefficient” tax system, warning distortions and loopholes are throttling investment and growth. Read more: OECD urges reeves to overhaul ‘inefficient’ UK tax system
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