Latest news with #minimumWage
Yahoo
10-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Embattled Rachel Reeves urges public to be patient with Labour on rescuing economy
Rachel Reeves has urged the public to be patient with Labour on the economy, saying that the change they voted for in last summer's election was 'never going to happen overnight'. The chancellor insisted she was 'impatient' to deliver and said ministers had made a start on turning things around, but there was 'lots more to do' as she blamed the last Tory government for the nation's financial problems. Her comments come just days after the Bank of England warned the public of months of sharp price rises ahead, driven by higher food costs. The central bank said Ms Reeves's national insurance contributions hike and the rise in the minimum wage were helping to push up the cost of the supermarket shop. It also slashed interest rates to 4 per cent, in a bid to boost the UK's stumbling economy. Ms Reeves has also been warned of a £50bn black hole in the government's finances, which leading economists say means she may have to raise taxes, cut public spending, or tear up her fiscal rules in order to fill. The forecasts piled pressure on the chancellor, less than 24 hours after Sir Keir Starmer pledged that this autumn's Budget would make sure 'people feel better off'. But in a piece for the Sunday Mirror, Ms Reeves cautioned that this would take time. She said her 'mission' was to 'end the cycle of decline, tackle the unfairness in our economy, give every community the chance to thrive and to make the lives of every working person better off'. But she warned: 'I'm impatient for the change people voted for to be delivered, but I have always known it was never going to happen overnight.' She hit out at the last Tory government, which Labour has accused of leaving a £22bn black hole, which Ms Reeves had said she had to grapple with when she entered the Treasury last year. She wrote: 'We know whose side we are on – the side of working people who for too long have seen promises made but never delivered, because politicians ducked the big decisions.' She also accused the Tories of presiding over ten years of 'endless spirals of chaos'. The progress that has been made so far includes trade deals with the United States, India and the European Union, she added. Earlier this week, the Bank of England said headline inflation would accelerate to 4 per cent by September, while inflation on food is set to hit 5.5 per cent between now and Christmas – putting a squeeze on household budgets. And Sir Keir Starmer opened the door to increasing tax rises this autumn, declining to explicitly rule out breaking Labour's manifesto pledge not to raise VAT, income tax and corporation tax. It came after the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) – a leading economic think tank – said the chancellor could also look at spending cuts in the autumn Budget as a way to raise the money needed by 2029-30 to remedy a £41.2bn shortfall on her borrowing targets, set out by her self-imposed 'stability rule'. To restore the almost £10bn 'buffer' that the government has maintained since last year's Budget, the chancellor would have to raise a total of £51.1bn, they warned.
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The Independent
10-08-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Embattled Rachel Reeves urges public to be patient with Labour on rescuing economy
Rachel Reeves has urged the public to be patient with Labour on the economy, saying that the change they voted for in last summer's election was 'never going to happen overnight'. The chancellor insisted she was 'impatient' to deliver and said ministers had made a start on turning things around, but there was 'lots more to do' as she blamed the last Tory government for the nation's financial problems. Her comments come just days after the Bank of England warned the public of months of sharp price rises ahead, driven by higher food costs. The central bank said Ms Reeves's national insurance contributions hike and the rise in the minimum wage were helping to push up the cost of the supermarket shop. It also slashed interest rates to 4 per cent, in a bid to boost the UK's stumbling economy. Ms Reeves has also been warned of a £50bn black hole in the government's finances, which leading economists say means she may have to raise taxes, cut public spending, or tear up her fiscal rules in order to fill. The forecasts piled pressure on the chancellor, less than 24 hours after Sir Keir Starmer pledged that this autumn's Budget would make sure 'people feel better off'. But in a piece for the Sunday Mirror, Ms Reeves cautioned that this would take time. She said her 'mission' was to 'end the cycle of decline, tackle the unfairness in our economy, give every community the chance to thrive and to make the lives of every working person better off'. But she warned: 'I'm impatient for the change people voted for to be delivered, but I have always known it was never going to happen overnight.' She hit out at the last Tory government, which Labour has accused of leaving a £22bn black hole, which Ms Reeves had said she had to grapple with when she entered the Treasury last year. She wrote: 'We know whose side we are on – the side of working people who for too long have seen promises made but never delivered, because politicians ducked the big decisions.' She also accused the Tories of presiding over ten years of 'endless spirals of chaos'. The progress that has been made so far includes trade deals with the United States, India and the European Union, she added. Earlier this week, the Bank of England said headline inflation would accelerate to 4 per cent by September, while inflation on food is set to hit 5.5 per cent between now and Christmas – putting a squeeze on household budgets. And Sir Keir Starmer opened the door to increasing tax rises this autumn, declining to explicitly rule out breaking Labour's manifesto pledge not to raise VAT, income tax and corporation tax. It came after the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) – a leading economic think tank – said the chancellor could also look at spending cuts in the autumn Budget as a way to raise the money needed by 2029-30 to remedy a £41.2bn shortfall on her borrowing targets, set out by her self-imposed 'stability rule'. To restore the almost £10bn 'buffer' that the government has maintained since last year's Budget, the chancellor would have to raise a total of £51.1bn, they warned.
Washington Post
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Missouri governor repeals voter-backed law guaranteeing paid sick leave
Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) on Thursday signed legislation repealing a voter-approved law that guaranteed paid sick leave to workers and adjusted the minimum wage to inflation. The law, Proposition A, had been repeatedly challenged by conservative lawmakers and business groups since it passed by a ballot measure in November with almost 58 percent of the vote, with the state Supreme Court upholding it just days before it went into effect in May.
Japan Times
03-07-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
SDP campaign to focus on inflation and opposing military expansion, leader says
Social Democratic Party leader Mizuho Fukushima has said the Japanese opposition party will fight the upcoming House of Councilors election with an emphasis on combating inflation and opposing military expansion. The SDP will put "livelihoods over missiles," she said in a recent interview ahead of the closely watched July 20 Upper House poll. Fukushima also said the SDP will aim to continue meeting the legal requirements to be a political party. "The SDP has proposed a zero percent consumption tax rate on foodstuffs and raising the minimum wage to a uniform ¥1,500 per hour across the country," she said. "We are saying that tax revenue should be used not for military expansion but for people's livelihoods." In the upcoming triennial election, the SDP aims to win three or more seats and is determined to obtain at least 2% of votes cast under the proportional representation format so that the party can maintain its status as a political party under law, Fukushima said. "The Liberal Democratic Party does not (want to) change," Fukushima said, asked about her evaluation of the administration of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who heads the ruling party. "Some changes occurred" after the ruling LDP and its Komeito ally lost their combined House of Representatives majority in the wake of their defeat in the October 2024 election for the all-important lower chamber, Fukushima said, noting that Diet debates were held on bills for introducing a selective dual surname system for married couples. "However, the overall trend has not changed at all," she said. "For example, (the Ishiba administration) has failed to work on cutting consumption tax and banning political donations from corporations and other organizations." Fukushima expressed disappointment over some opposition parties having offered cooperation to the ruling bloc for certain bills, including a draft government budget, saying, "Opposition parties should join forces to confront the unchanging LDP, as in the case of a bill to abolish the provisional add-on gasoline tax rate." The SDP exists to prevent people from starving and the country from going into war, the leader said. "I am currently very concerned about the rise of xenophobia, and this isn't unrelated to preparations for war." "One of my favorite phrases is 'Peace and equality go hand in hand,'" Fukushima said. "People are not at fault for their difficult lives, and I want to call for changing the unfair tax system, as well as the current politics and the use of tax revenue that favor large corporations and the wealthy." She stressed the importance of creating peace at a time when Russia's aggression against Ukraine continues and instability is growing in the Middle East. "I want to change the current global situation where violations of international law are occurring, with some countries expanding their military capabilities and adopting a stance of not hesitating to launch the first strike." While Japan lodged a protest against Israel when it launched attacks on Iran last month, the Ishiba administration should react more harshly by calling the Israeli action "a violation of international law," Fukushima said. "Japan should not take the same position as the United States."
Times
02-07-2025
- Business
- Times
With new workers' rights on the way, no wonder employers prefer AI
T he benefits reform debacle was getting all the attention in Westminster this week, but another legislative proposal wending its way through parliament is of more immediate importance to the business community. The Employment Rights Bill has been ringing alarm bells for some time. Handing new rights and benefits to workers is all very well, but employers know those rights will mean more obligations, costs, distraction and risk to themselves. The bill is a hotchpotch of 28 different measures ranging from more rights for trade unions and a crackdown on zero hours contracts to more paternity leave and greater protection from unfair dismissal. Employers, bluntly, are feeling a bit mugged. Those national insurance hikes in April were a significant blow for anyone with a big workforce. So, for some, was the parallel increase in the minimum wage — which has just been raised by 6.7 per cent.
