Chancellor signals sweeping tax rises ahead of November budget amid business warning

Mace | 4th November 2025 | Politics

LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 04: Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves delivers a speech in the media briefing room of 9 Downing Street, ahead of the forthcoming Budget, on November 04, 2025 in London, England. During her speech Rachel Reeves put the country on notice that tax rises are coming in the upcoming Budget saying “each of us must do our bit”. The Chancellor declined to recommit to Labour’s manifesto commitments not to raise income tax, national insurance or VAT, saying “we will all have to contribute”. (Photo by WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has flagged major tax increases in her forthcoming budget, prompting the British Chambers of Commerce to warn that business confidence is at multi-year lows ahead of a crucial week for both politics and the economy.

In her scene-setter speech for the upcoming budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves set out the challenge facing the government, signalling that further tax rises cannot be ruled out as public finances come under pressure. The British Chambers of Commerce issued a stark assessment for business leaders, saying a fifth of firms expect turnover to fall and a quarter have already scaled back investment plans ahead of the November budget. Recent corporate commentary underscored discomfort among UK firms. Michael O’Leary of Ryanair described the economy as “doomed” under the current government, pushing for tax cuts as a route to growth after the airline posted a 42 per cent rise in first-half profits. On the business front, the British legal-services sector has recorded growth in exports to Canada, reaching £191 million in 2024, as government ministers promote UK legal expertise abroad while the domestic investment climate remains fraught. With business groups warning that the upcoming Budget must ...

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