The Labour Party has postponed a £5,000-per-head corporate conference due to lack of interest from executives and lobbyists. The event, scheduled for 23 June in London, was intended to connect business leaders with Labour’s economic strategy. Ministers including Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds were expected to attend. However, several major firms declined to participate, citing high costs and limited ministerial access. It is the second Labour corporate event cancelled in recent months, following a similar withdrawal in Merseyside in March. Labour has faced criticism over the pricing structure for its business outreach. The party raised fees for its corporate conference from £3,000 in 2023 to £5,000 in 2024, excluding VAT. The previous year’s event sold out rapidly and generated over £1 million in revenue. Complaints about the quality of Labour’s engagement with business have grown. At the 2024 conference, delegates reportedly queued for refreshments and had minimal direct access to ministers despite the high entry fee. Some attendees called the event poor value for money and requested refunds, referring to it as a “rip-off.” Tensions between Labour and the business community have also escalated following Reeves’s first Budget, which introduced £25 billion in extra national insurance contributions from employers. The business response was critical, particularly from those who had previously backed Labour financially and politically. Additional measures in the Budget, including a national minimum wage rise and a sweeping package of workers’ rights reforms, further contributed to industry concerns. The party has also been accused of monetising ministerial access. In October 2024, Labour cancelled a £30,000 private breakfast with Jonathan Reynolds after media coverage prompted a backlash. Senior party figures, including Ed Miliband, reportedly warned against repeating such practices. The cancellation of the June conference suggests Labour may need to revise its business outreach strategy. While the party maintains it is committed to transparent stakeholder engagement, the combination of rising costs, policy friction, and limited access appears to have dampened enthusiasm among potential corporate attendees....