Last week’s Autumn Budget statement from the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has proved to be the worst of all worlds for hard-working people, business, hospitality and growth.
I visited two local businesses on Friday – McDonald’s in Brentwood and FourEighty in Shenfield – to hear their thoughts on the impact of this Budget on their day to day running costs. The two have very different business models – Brentwood franchisee Joey Antwi-Kusi runs his McDonald’s restaurant as a local business selling the brand’s foods and products, while FourEighty is a family business run by local entrepreneur Matt Bolton. Nevertheless, both have been badly hit by the rises this year in Employer’s National Insurance contributions, the National Minimum Wage, business rates and an expansion to the sugar tax on soft drinks and milk shakes.
Our local businesses are already telling me they are letting people go, or not replacing those who leave, because they just cannot afford to employ more staff. This is bad news for employment, and bad news for local people who need full and part-time jobs.
Add the ongoing high costs of energy and food, and there is no doubt the Chancellor’s Budget is bad news for business. Rachel Reeves’ decision to freeze the tax bands means more low-paid people will be dragged into paying tax on their income to fund the welfare bill for those who are not working. Coming from a Labour Government elected on a manifesto promise not to raise taxes on working people, and a Chancellor who promised she would not “be coming back for more” this Budget is a disaster.
