Business leaders face a nervous final few days before the chancellor's second Budget, having borne the brunt of a brutal set of tax hikes this time last year. Firms are still reeling from those: the £25bn National Insurance increase and an inflation-busting rise in the minimum wage. Confidence in boardrooms has grown increasingly fragile as the Budget nears. Almost all measures of sentiment among chief executives and finance bosses in the last six months have shown alarm bells ringing. Business rates are a bug-bear. Many firms have seen their bills almost double, after a pandemic-era discount of 75% for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses was cut to 40% last year. According to a recent survey by Barclays, 55% of business leaders say they are delaying investment decisions until they have seen the Budget. But 43% say they expect to increase investment after it, a sign of possible pent-up optimism. But confidence is still very fragile. The chancellor will need to handle with care.
BBQ - What would a Business want from the budget this year?
