UK Politics

Sir Keir Starmer’s cabinet is deeply divided over economic policy, with senior ministers fearful further measures to target the rich in next month’s Budget could accelerate the wealth exodus from Britain.Cabinet ministers have told the The Independent they believe Rachel Reeves has already gone too far with measures targeting the wealthy and businesses, and have urged the chancellor to change course if she is to have any hope of achieving growth. They cited “anti-aspiration” measures such as the abolition of non-dom status and VAT on private school fees as key drivers of wealth away from the UK, saying they are “harming this country”. Further measures reportedly being considered include a property tax on high-value homes and a new bank profits tax.Ministers have instead urged the prime minister and Ms Reeves to consider “efficiency savings” and cuts to fill a Budget black hole estimated to be between £30bn and £40bn.Those on the left in Labour have noted that the recent reshuffle has “handed more power to the right of the party” while left-wingers who support wealth taxes have been demoted or pushed out.But a powerful group within cabinet on the right of the party believes the government is failing to rein in spending and needs to be more ready “to reform the state in a Labour way”.One minister said: “The trouble is we have crossed a line in trying to encourage aspiration. The non-dom change and the VAT on school fees have sent the opposite message.”The autumn statement is expected to be a make-or-break moment for the prime minister and chancellor Rachel Reeves More

Robert Jenrick launched a scathing attack on Liz Truss’s disastrous mini-Budget, describing it as “careless” and “un-conservative” as the party attempts to rebuild public trust after its difficult recent past. Addressing a packed-out room at the Conservative Party conference, the shadow justice secretary said former prime minister Ms Truss had made “big mistakes” when her mini-Budget spooked the financial markets in 2022 and led to a spike in mortgage rates and her eventual resignation.Mr Jenrick also dismissed any speculation about his potential leadership ambitions, telling his audience Kemi Badenoch would lead the Tories into the next election.Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick has launched a scathing attack on Liz Truss More

The governor of the Bank of England has said the UK needs a “supportive” investment environment if it is to realise the economic benefits of innovative new technologies.Speaking at an event in Edinburgh on Monday, Andrew Bailey said “general purpose technologies” (GPT) such as AI, green energy and the space sector could lead to “industry-wide growth” and a boost to productivity.However, he said achieving this required “the necessary investment”, which he said depended on “a lot of commitment”.“If we are on the cusp of seeing another advance in GPT, we need the conditions to support an environment where investment occurs across the economy,” he said.“From the official side, we need to provide a policy framework which sustains growth and innovation.”He went on: “We must do all we can to ensure the domestic investment environment – by which I mean the institutions and individuals who direct investment to where it is needed – is supportive.”He also said the investment environment had to allow for the slow pace of “technological shifts” such as AI and space technologies, which he said take time to feed through into economic improvements.“GPT innovation in history has benefited from, and needed, long development periods, so it is important that we have an investment environment that supports this type of patient progress,” he said.As part of this, Mr Bailey said it was necessary to take a “pragmatic and open-minded approach to the potential and risks of AI”.“We must understand what it can and cannot deliver, and where it can create broader issues that will need to be tackled,” he said.“But I would say to the alarmists that it is all of our responsibility to solve such issues rather than just broadcast them.”Mr Bailey sounded a positive note about the future of innovation in Scotland and the UK more widely, and praised some of the recent moves to support investment.He described himself as a “strong advocate” of the UK Government’s proposals to boost the level of investment by UK pension funds in British businesses, which he said demonstrated “a level of commitment to growth in the economy and to the British public”.He also said British Business Bank was increasing its commitment to “create growth capital in UK unlisted high-potential companies”, while the Scottish National Investment Bank was “seeking to support longer-term investment projects”.“These developments provide a real opportunity to generate external institutional capital into high-potential companies,” he said.Mr Bailey was delivering a keynote address at Scotland’s Global Investment Summit in the Scottish capital on Monday. More

The Conservative Party conference has historically been a magnet for protesters, from climate change activists to opponents of Partygate. But as Kemi Badenoch hosts its annual gathering in Manchester this week, the streets around the convention centre are eerily quiet. Protesters, even including the notorious anti-Brexit demonstrator Steve Bray, have not bothered to show up, in a sign of the fading relevance of the Tories under Ms Badenoch. Notorious anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray has not come to Tory conference More

Watch: Moment Kemi Badenoch asked if Reform UK have stolen Tory thunderRobert Jenrick has slammed Liz Truss’ mini-Budget as “careless” and “unconservative” as he said the Tory party must accept its mistakes.The shadow justice secretary told a packed-out room at the Conservative party conference ex-prime minister Ms Truss made “big mistakes”, adding the party must be “honest” if it is to rebuild public trust.He added he thought the UK should aim for “net emigration” in order to “give the country some breathing space” in a far-reaching call that goes beyond Reform UK’s Nigel Farage’s policies.But he dismissed any notion of leadership ambitions, telling his audience Kemi Badenoch would lead the Tories into the next election.It comes after the shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride addressed a half-empty hall on Monday morning as the conference continued at Manchester Central Convention Centre.The shadow chancellor pledged to offer young people a £5,000 “first job bonus” as he sought to position the Tories as the party of “fiscal responsibility”.He also unveiled proposals to slash £47 billion of government spending if the party win power, and promised to abolish business rates for high street shops and pubs.Cleverly fails to draw a crowdPolitical correspondent Archie Mitchell reports…James Cleverly has failed to draw a crowd for his conference speech, with the shadow housing secretary looking out at a sea of empty seats.There is a man towards the back of the hall who is actually asleep, which sums up the mood in the room well.Mr Cleverly has embarked on a rambling attack against Steve Reed, his government counterpart who he accused of being useless.But even the lines he wants to land are drawing limited applause at best. It’s not a great look for the former future star of the Tory Party.( More

One of Nigel Farage’s closest allies has suggested the Tories will merge with Reform UK after the next general election under Robert Jenrick’s leadership. Gawain Towler, who began working for Mr Farage as a Ukip press officer in 2004 and sits on the Reform governing board, said Mr Jenrick and a handful of remaining Tory MPs would abandon the Conservative Party in favour of Reform. Mr Towler, who was Reform’s director of communications until last year, said Mr Jenrick would not want to lead “a rump party”. Gawain Towler is one of Nigel Farage’s longest-serving aides More

Sir Keir Starmer has urged students not to attend pro-Palestine protests on the second anniversary of the “heinous” October 7 terror attacks on Israel and just days after two people were killed at a synagogue in Manchester.Hundreds were arrested at a Palestine Action demonstration in London on Saturday, which went ahead despite calls from Sir Keir and others in the wake of the attack on British soil, leading Amnesty International to say it should not be the job of police to arrest people “peacefully sitting down”.Thousands of students are expected to attend rallies on Tuesday on the second anniversary of the atrocity in which 1,200 people were killed.But the prime minister’s official spokesperson said: “Just because there is freedom to protest does not mean you should necessarily go ahead with these gatherings, given the context.” A Palestine Action march at the weekend saw hundreds of people arrested in London More

The Conservatives have vowed to abolish business rates for high street shops and pubs should they secure victory in the upcoming general election.Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride made the commitment at the Conservative Party conference on Monday, arguing the “burden of Labour’s tax rises” had been “simply too much to bear” for many businesses.Pledging to “get business rates down”, he said: “I can announce that as a direct result of getting public spending under control, a future Conservative government will completely abolish business rates for shops and pubs on our high street.” He added: “End of. Finished. Gone.”The policy is expected to cost £4 billion, with the Conservatives arguing it would help protect jobs, particularly for young people, at 250,000 businesses across the country.Setting out what he called a “radical plan to rebuild our economy”, he pledged that the Tories would “always be there” for businesses.Sir Mel Stride made the commitment at the Conservative Party conference on Monday More