Connect with us

Published

on

John Lewis’s chief executive has called on whoever wins the general election to deliver a stable environment for economic growth that allows consumers to spend with confidence.

Speaking as the John Lewis Partnership reported its first full-year profit since before the pandemic, Nish Kankiwala told Sky News the political and economic turbulence of recent years had damaged consumer confidence.

“There’s no doubt that the last few years have been tough for families, with inflation, paying the electricity bill, mortgage rates have gone up. Now, we have enjoyed a growth in our customers despite that environment.

“My ask from a broader perspective is that we have stability. That makes such a big difference to customers buying big ticket items, or even the day-to-day. That would be my request.

Money latest: Britons to see big bill rises in April

“I think encouraging growth is important for our economy, along with stability so customers can make those decisions in an environment where they trust the next year is going to be similar to this year, and I don’t think we have had that in years just recently past.”

The comments, from the boss of former prime minister Theresa May’s favourite shop, reflect a broadly held sentiment in business that the election offers a chance to reset the economy after the volatility and uncertainty of recent years, exemplified by the chaos of the Liz Truss mini budget.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Budget 2024: A new age of austerity?

Mr Kankiwala said the return to profit at the group, which comprises John Lewis stores and Waitrose supermarkets, was driven by an additional one million customers across the two brands, and higher margins on sales.

Despite recording a £42m pre-tax profit, there will be no bonus for the 76,000 staff, known as partners, of Britain’s largest employee-owned company, the third year in four that no bonus has been paid.

Mr Kankiwala said partners would receive the company’s largest ever pay rise, with up to two-thirds seeing an uplift of more than 10%, and that pay, and investing in the business, was a shared priority.

“In the year that I have been CEO it has been very clear to me that they want a long-term future for the partnership, that they want us to invest in the business, that we have the shops that look right, have the technology that we need and focus on pay,” he said.

The partnership includes Waitrose supermarkets as well as the John Lewis department stores. Pic: JLP
Image:
The partnership includes Waitrose supermarkets as well as the John Lewis department stores. Pic: JLP

Mr Kankiwala would not rule out redundancies but insisted there was no formal target for headcount reductions following reports John Lewis is considering shedding up to 11,000 staff in the coming years.

“We’ve got a very clear plan for growth and it is working this year. New customers are coming through our shops, we’re growing margins and growing profit and that is what’s delivering.

“So there are no numbers, no parameters on any of those things [redundancies]. Fundamentally it is about delivering growth. We have got a plan that delivers growth, that delivers growth for partners and business and we will continue to review that.”

Mr Kankiwala has been in post for a year and before his second is out the current chair, Dame Sharon White, will have left having decided to depart after just a single five-year term in the job.

Dame Sharon’s plans for John Lewis included diversifying the brand, with projects including build-to-let homes and a target of 40% of profit coming from non-retail sources.

Mr Kankiwala confirmed that target has now been abandoned in favour of an “unashamed focus” on retail.

“The environment over the last few years has changed dramatically,” he said. “When it was set in 2020 interest rates were much lower, we didn’t have the high inflation, and fundamentally we don’t want to have a target for that because we are focusing on retail.”

He also insisted Waitrose and John Lewis would remain part of the same group. “We’re a partnership, two great brands. And they stay together.”

Continue Reading

Business

US trade deal ‘possible’ but not ‘certain’, says senior minister

Published

on

By

US trade deal 'possible' but not 'certain', says senior minister

A trade deal with the US is “possible” but not “certain”, a senior minister has said as he struck a cautious tone about negotiations with the White House.

Pat McFadden, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips there was “a serious level of engagement going on at high levels” to secure a UK-US trade deal.

However, Mr McFadden, a key ally of Sir Keir Starmer, struck a more cautious tone than Chancellor Rachel Reeves on the prospect of a US trade deal, saying: “I think an agreement is possible – I don’t think it’s certain, and I don’t want to say it’s certain, but I think it’s possible.”

He went on to say the government wanted an “agreement in the UK’s interests” and not a “hasty deal”, amid fears from critics that Number 10 could acquiesce a deal that lowers food standards, for example, or changes certain taxes in a bid to persuade Donald Trump to lower some of the tariffs that have been placed on British goods.

Politics latest: UK has ‘recognised all along’ that Russia is aggressor – minister

And asked about the timing of the deal – following recent reports an agreement was imminent – Mr McFadden said: “We’ll keep working with the United States and keep trying to get to an agreement in the coming weeks.”

As well as talks with the US, the UK has also ramped up its efforts with the EU, with suggestions it could include a new EU youth mobility scheme that would allow under-30s from the bloc to live, work and study in the UK and vice versa.

Mr McFadden said he believed the government could “improve upon” the Brexit deal struck by Boris Johnson, saying it had caused “an awful lot of bureaucracy and costs here in the UK”.

He said “first and foremost” on the government’s agenda was securing a food and agriculture and a veterinary agreement, saying it was “such an important area for the UK and an area where we’ve had so much extra cost and bureaucracy because of Brexit”.

He added: “But again, as with the United States, there’s no point in calling the game before it’s done. We’ve still got work to do, and we’re doing that work with our partners in the EU.”

The Cabinet Office minister also rejected suggestions the UK would have to choose between pursuing a trade deal with the US and one with the EU – the latter of which has banned chlorinated chicken in its markets – as has the UK – but which the US has historically wanted.

Read more:
Chancellor Rachel Reeves outlines red lines for US trade deal
Green Party co-leader denies split over trans rights

On the issue of chlorinated chicken, Mr McFadden said the government had “made clear we will not water down animal welfare standards with either party”.

“But I don’t agree that it’s some fundamental choice beyond where we have to pick one trading partner rather than another. I think that’s to misunderstand the nature of the UK economy, and I don’t think would be in our interests to put all our eggs in one basket.”

Also speaking to Trevor Phillips was Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who said the government should be close to closing the deal with the US “because we got very close last time President Trump was in office”.

She also insisted food standards should not be watered down in order to get a deal, saying she did not reach an agreement with Canada when she was in government for that reason.

“What Labour needs to do now is show that they can get a deal that isn’t making concessions, so we can have what we had last month before the trade tariffs, and we need serious people doing this,” she said.

Continue Reading

Business

UK growth could be ‘postponed’ for two years, report warns

Published

on

By

UK growth could be 'postponed' for two years, report warns

UK economic growth could be “postponed” for two years amid a toxic cocktail of headwinds for confidence, according to a respected forecast which says further interest rate cuts may help lift the mood.

EY ITEM Club, which uses the Treasury’s economic modelling, downgraded expectations for output in both 2025 and 2026 in its latest report.

It warns of a direct hit from Donald Trump‘s trade war and from persistent high inflation in the UK economy.

But the forecast says the biggest impact would come from weaker sentiment among both households and businesses, given the surge in uncertainty and hits to global growth caused by the imposition of tariffs.

Money latest: Vet hits back at critics of prices

A “baseline” 10% tariff on imports from most countries around the world is in place while UK-produced steel, aluminium and cars are subject to duties of 25%.

Around 16% of all goods shipped abroad head for the United States typically but the study said that weaker demand for exports would likely hit that number.

More on Tariffs

It forecast UK growth of 0.8% this year – down from the 1% it expected three months ago – and a figure of 0.9% for 2026.

That last figure represented a downgrade of 0.6 percentage points.

These are not the numbers the Treasury will want to see, coming in even lower than the International Monetary Fund’s downgrades last week, as it leads work on the government’s stated priority of securing economic growth.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

What IMF said about the economy

It has been accused of an own goal through the chancellor’s tax increases on business, which came into effect at the beginning of this month.

At the same time, households are grappling a surge in bills, including those for energy, water and council tax, which are threatening to depress spending power further.

Data on Friday showed a renewed slump in consumer confidence and sharp increases in the number of firms in “critical” financial distress and going to the wall.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

US trade deal ‘possible, not certain’

EY said the weaker global economic backdrop and spiralling levels of uncertainty would weigh on both families and businesses.

It warned the consumer mood remained “cautious” amid the continuing pressures on household budgets, further limiting demand for major purchases.

Anna Anthony, regional managing partner for EY UK & Ireland, said: “There had been signs that the economy was exceeding expectations in the opening months of 2025, but a combination of global trade disruption, uncertainty, and persistent inflation look likely to postpone the UK’s return to more moderate levels of growth.

“Businesses thrive on certainty, so it’s unsurprising that an unpredictable global market is translating into lower levels of business investment over the short term.

“While conditions remain challenging, there are still some grounds for optimism.

“The services-led UK economy is projected to see continued growth this year and gradual interest rate cuts should slowly bolster business and household spending.

“Over time, the unpredictable global landscape may offer opportunities for the UK to position itself as a stable, attractive destination for investment.”

Continue Reading

Business

Chair candidates battle to check in at Premier Inn-owner Whitbread

Published

on

By

Chair candidates battle to check in at Premier Inn-owner Whitbread

Two chairs of FTSE-100 companies are vying to succeed Adam Crozier at the top of Whitbread, the London-listed group behind the Premier Inn hotel chain.

Sky News has learnt that Christine Hodgson, who chairs water company Severn Trent, and Andrew Martin, chair of the testing and inspection group Intertek, are the leading contenders for the Whitbread job.

Mr Crozier, who has chaired the leisure group since 2018, is expected to step down later this year.

The search, which has been taking place for several months, is expected to conclude in the coming weeks, according to one City source.

Ms Hodgson has some experience of the leisure industry, having served on the board of Ladbrokes Coral Group until 2017, while Mr Martin was a senior executive at the contract caterer Compass Group and finance chief at the travel agent First Choice Holidays.

Under Mr Crozier’s stewardship, Whitbread has been radically reshaped, selling its Costa Coffee subsidiary to The Coca-Cola Company in 2019 for nearly £4bn.

The company has also seen off an activist campaign spearheaded by Elliott Advisers, while Mr Crozier orchestrated the appointment of Dominic Paul, its chief executive, following Alison Brittain’s retirement.

More from Money

It said last year that it sees potential to grow the network from 86,000 UK bedrooms to 125,000 over the next decade or so.

Mr Crozier is one of Britain’s most seasoned boardroom figures, and now chairs BT Group and Kantar, the market research and data business backed by Bain Capital and WPP Group.

He previously ran the Football Association, ITV and – in between – Royal Mail Group.

On Friday, shares in Whitbread closed at £25.41, giving the company a market capitalisation of about £4.5bn.

Whitbread declined to comment this weekend.

Continue Reading

Trending