Tax Hikes and Rayner Union Bill Blamed as Business Confidence Drops – Guido Fawkes

Tax Hikes and Rayner Union Bill Blamed as Business Confidence Drops

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Two concurrent business confidence surveys today paint a grim picture ahead of the summer as analysts point the finger at Labour policies. The Lloyds Bank Business Barometer measure fell by 10 points to 39% this month – the lowest since the start of the year – while general economic optimism fell by 13 points to 28%. At the same time price intentions rose with 70% of businesses expecting to raise prices in the next 12 months. It ain’t just tariffs to blame…

The CBI’s monthly survey showed private sector output declined in the three months to April and will fall again in the summer. The CBI says “global volatility is another drag on business sentiment, already hit by the rise in national insurance contributions and the national living wage and continued concern over the Employment Rights Bill.” Earlier this month the five largest business groups staged a rare intervention against Rayner’s bill. Safe to say the looming prospect of massively empowered union bosses isn’t filling businesses with joy…