Good morning from the City AM liveblog team.
Rachel Reeves is set to plug a looming £30bn hole in the public finances with a “dog’s breakfast” of tax hikes, according to new analysis.
The Institute of Economic Affairs warns that the gap will likely be addressed by combining broad-based income tax rises with a patchwork of smaller, targeted measures.
The gap, which has widened since March 2025 forecasts, stems largely from spiralling public spending rather than economic shocks.
Roughly £20bn of the shortfall reflects a long-overdue downgrade in productivity forecasts, with the remainder resulting from government policy choices.
This includes scrapping a £5bn welfare savings package and spending favourable economic assumptions instead of banking them.
Potential moves include levying national insurance on rental income, closing capital gains tax loopholes, higher council tax on expensive properties and raising so-called ‘sin taxes’ on gambling and sugary drinks.
Here’s a summary of our top headlines over the weekend:
Steel mogul Lakshmi Mittal leaves UK for Switzerland and Dubai
Reeves delays Shein import clampdown to 2029
Daily Mail owner seals £500m deal for The Telegraph
Businesses expected to be named and shamed over minimum wage breaches
Bosses warn Reeves against ‘stop-start economy’
City of London policy chairman: Bank levy should be wound down