Labour’s Growth Dream Crumbles as High Street Sales Slump and Business Confidence Dives
High street retailers had their worst slump since Covid, with November sales tumbling 5.8% year-on-year, according to BDO. Online sales took a 7.8% hit, while in-store sales dropped by 5.5%. And part-time Christmas job vacancies have fallen by a staggering 12.9% this year…
Meanwhile, business confidence in the UK has nosedived to its lowest level since April 2020, according to the Institute of Directors’ latest optimism tracker, plunging to a dismal -65 in November, down from -52 in October. Business leaders are pointing the finger squarely at Reeves and her tax hikes, with NICs hikes expected to cost the industry £7 billion alone. As Wetherspoon’s boss Sir Tim Martin put it:
“All democratic governments need to manage the relationship between an economic horse and the public services cart – society needs both. This Government has disincentivised and discouraged the horse.”
It’s looking even bleaker for growth fans as Starmer reportedly prepares to ditch Labour’s mission of making the UK the fastest-growing economy in the G7, instead focusing on other “milestones” in his upcoming speech on Thursday. Starmer’s ‘Plan for Change’ may need to be a change of plan…