Jeremy Hunt drops hint about tax cuts in budget

Published

4 months ago

March 5, 2024

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Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has hinted that cuts to public services may be used to pay for an election-year reduction in taxes.

On the Politics at Jack and Sam’s podcast, it was revealed Mr Hunt was considering a last minute further cut to public spending to boost the tax giveaway in the spring budget.

Mr Hunt is set to deliver the 2024 Budget at Wednesday lunchtime. The government is using the fiscal event to try and win back voters ahead of the general election expected to take place later this year.

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Speaking to broadcasters on Monday, Mr Hunt repeated his stance that low-tax economies are “growing the fastest” and are “more dynamic, more energetic, more entrepreneurial”.

He said: “So we do want to move to a lower taxed economy, but we’re only going to do so in a way that is responsible and recognises that there are things that taxes pay for, that we couldn’t cut taxes by borrowing.

“We’ll do so in a responsible way. But if we can spend money on public services more efficiently, then that will mean less pressure on taxpayers.”

Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, told Sky News on Sunday that any tax cuts proposed this week would have to be “undone” after the election.

One measure that has been mooted as a cash-raiser for Treasury coffers is ending or reducing “non-dom” tax breaks.

Mr Hunt has refused to be drawn on whether he will adopt the measure.

But one Tory MP – Simon Clarke – has warned colleagues they should be “very, very careful what we wish for” when it comes to the proposed change, reposting on social media a thread about the claimed benefits to the UK economy of the status.

Non-doms only have to pay tax on money earned in the UK, while their overseas income and wealth are not subject to UK tax – and they can benefit from the status for up to 15 years.

Labour’s shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said it would be an “abject humiliation” for the Tories if they implemented Labour’s nom-dom policy given cabinet ministers had “spent years rubbishing this idea”.

Business

China targets EU pork as threat of trade war escalates

Published

8 hours ago

June 17, 2024

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China targets EU pork as threat of trade war escalates

China may target the European Union’s pork producers in retaliation for EU tariffs on its electric cars.

The world’s second largest economy revealed on Monday that it had launched an investigation into imports of pork for human consumption from the bloc.

The Commerce ministry inquiry was in response to a complaint by Chinese pork producers earlier this month.

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The announcement was made less than a week after the European Commission said it would impose additional tariffs of up to 38% on battery electric cars imported from China by 4 July, unless a remedy could be agreed.

The planned penalties, which Europe’s car industry opposes, are a response to what the commission sees as unfair Chinese state support for manufacturers that is pricing out European competitors.

By targeting pork, instead of tit-for-tat measures on EU-made electric vehicles, China would avoid harming its own car brands’ European operations.

Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark and France are among the top seven exporters of pig-related goods to China.

Russia and South America could be the main beneficiaries of any resulting tariffs on EU pork.

Spain is the top supplier of pork to China, accounting for a quarter of all imports at a value of $1.25bn annually, according to Chinese customs data.

Spanish pork producers group Interporc said it would fully cooperate with the investigation by Chinese authorities, adding: “The EU and China have plenty of time to reach agreements.”

Its Danish counterpart warned producers would be “hit incredibly hard” by any restrictions on sales to China.

Business

Party supplies retailer Wonder on brink of administration

Published

17 hours ago

June 17, 2024

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A party supplies retailer and distributor is teetering on the brink of administration after being hit by a downturn in consumer spending.

Sky News understands that Wonder Group, which was previously known as Amscan, was on Monday preparing to file a notice of intention to appoint Interpath Advisory to handle an insolvency process.

Sources said the company had been affected by falling demand in international markets for party and costume products.

Wonder, which employs about 200 people in the UK, could now be broken up through the sale of a number of its assets in the coming weeks, they added.

Eighteen months ago it set a £500m revenue target by 2026, after acquiring the Swedish-based online retailer Party King.

The group also employs about 200 people in Europe, and has a UK base in Milton Keynes.

Among its other acquisitions in recent years was Ginger Ray, which it bought in 2021.

Wonder’s management team is said to have elected to file the notice of intention to appoint administrators to buy itself temporary breathing space from creditors.

Endless, the investment firm, which backed a buyout of Wonder in 2021 from US-based Party City, declined to comment on the process or how many jobs could be put at risk.

Another UK player in the sector, Smiffys, is also on the brink of collapse after lining up PricewaterhouseCoopers as administrator last month.

Business

Retailers accused of keeping petrol and diesel prices high for ‘no good reason’ while Britain ‘distracted’ by election

Published

23 hours ago

June 17, 2024

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Retailers accused of keeping petrol and diesel prices high for 'no good reason' while Britain 'distracted' by election

Fuel retailers have been accused of using the “distraction” of the general election to keep petrol and diesel prices “persistently high”.

The RAC said the cost of filling up at the pumps was “far higher” than would normally be expected as wholesale costs had fallen since the end of April.

The average price of a litre of petrol across the UK is currently 146.3p, which is “5p more expensive than it should be”, according to the motoring firm.

It said the average price for the same product was 141.1p in Northern Ireland.

Meanwhile, a litre of diesel in the UK costs an average of 151.5p – the most expensive in Europe – while in Northern Ireland the price is 141.9p, the RAC claimed.

Its head of policy Simon Williams said: “Margins are once again staying persistently high, and drivers are paying the price.

“Our data clearly shows that pump prices haven’t fallen in line with the reduction in wholesale prices, so drivers across the UK – with the exception of those in Northern Ireland where fairer prices are charged – are once again losing several pounds every time they fill up.

“We believe there’s no good reason for retailers in Great Britain not cutting their prices at the pumps far further.

“We can only think they’re hoping no one will notice due to the distraction of the general election.”

The RAC said retailers’ margins – the differences between what they paid for fuel and the pump price – were 14p per litre for petrol and 16p per litre for diesel.

The long-term average for both fuels is 8p per litre.

Mr Williams said the firm hoped the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is “aware of what is going on and will use this to bring retailers into line as soon as it’s able to”.

An investigation by the regulator into supermarket petrol station prices found last year that increased profit margins had led to drivers paying an extra 6p per litre for fuel in 2022.

In March the CMA said margins remained “concerning”.

Prices are usually cheaper in Northern Ireland than in the rest of the UK, partly due to competition from forecourts in the Republic of Ireland.

Independent fuel retailers have said higher business rates, energy bills and wages have all contributed to higher costs.