6:46 am, October 17, 2022
Truss bids to save premiership amid growing unrest in Tory party
Liz Truss will try to save her premiership this week, with her fate hinging on the mood of the market and her own backbench MPs.
All eyes will be on the market reaction on Monday morning, after the prime minister appointed Jeremy Hunt as chancellor and effectively ditched her economic agenda in a bid to restore credibility to her ailing administration.
Yet those efforts could come to nought this week if Tory MPs decide that a change of leader is required, with three members of Truss’s parliamentary party already breaking ranks to call on her to go.
No ‘fat’ to cut from public services, warns new report
Experts have warned that there is no real ‘fat’ for new chancellor Jeremy Hunt to cut as he seeks savings ahead of the fiscal plan later this month.
The new chancellor, who stepped into the role after Kwasi Kwarteng was forced out on Friday after weeks of chaos following his mini-budget, has made little secret of the fact that taxes could rise and spending cuts may be called for to restore market confidence in the UK. But he steps into the role amid fresh warnings about a ‘lost decade’ for public services.
A new report, published by the Institute for Government and the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, warns that Hunt could find very little to trim from budgets that will not have further detrimental impacts on public services.
UK economy to enter recession until summer 2023, financial experts warn
Britain’s economy is expected to shrink around 0.2 per cent each quarter from October through to June next year, economists have warned.
This prolonged economic decline will result in a 0.3 per cent fall in gross domestic product (GDP) for 2023 as a whole, the EY Item Club predicted in its autumn forecast.
The economic forecasting group has significantly downgraded its previous summer forecast which estimated the economy would grow by one per cent in 2023. A combination of high energy prices, surging inflation, rising interest rates and global economic weakness have driven up the likelihood that the UK economy will face a recession until the middle of next year.
Nurses, ambulance staff and hospital cleaners balloted on strike action
More than 400,000 health workers are to be balloted for strikes, threatening a massive escalation of industrial unrest across the country in growing disputes over issues including pay.
Unison announced that its members ranging from nursing staff and ambulance crews to hospital porters and cleaners, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, will vote in the coming weeks on whether to mount a campaign of industrial action.
Members of other health unions representing nurses, midwives, ambulance crews and physiotherapists are also being balloted for industrial action. Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said the government’s decision to award a £1,400 pay rise in the summer had caused anger among NHS workers, sparking resignations across the service.
Government presses on with legislation to ‘keep Britain moving’ during strikes
The government is pressing ahead with legal moves to introduce minimum service levels during strikes by transport workers.
The announcement follows months of industrial action by railway workers in bitter disputes over pay, jobs and conditions which has caused travel chaos across the country. Unions criticised the move, with many believing it would be unworkable.
Legislation will be introduced following prime minister Liz Truss’s commitment to bring in such a Bill within her first 30 days of Parliament sitting. The government pointed out that similar legislation already exists in Western Europe, including France and Spain.
Weekend Car Dealer headlines you might have missed
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- Why I’m selling my classic Ford Fiesta XR2 in an online used car auction
- UK automotive industry dealt major blow as BMW moves Mini Electric production to China
- Lamborghini boss warns against ‘greenwashing’ as firm looks towards all-electric future
- Dealer group Gravell’s sees profits rise to £5m during strong 2021
- Britishvolt’s future hanging by a thread as firm seeks £200m to avoid running out of money
Transport for London preparing injunction over Just Stop Oil protests
Transport for London is preparing to apply for an injunction against Just Stop Oil activists after a fortnight of protests in the capital.
Members of the campaign group sprayed paint over an Aston Martin showroom and blocked Park Lane in central London in their latest action on Sunday morning. The activists, who have been calling for the government to halt all new oil and gas licences and consents, are staging protests every day in October.
Cabinet ministers Suella Braverman and Nadhim Zahawi met the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, and leaders of the Metropolitan Police and TfL to discuss the disruption.
Drop in sterling adds 7p per litre to fuel bills
Sterling’s fall in value has added 7p per litre to drivers’ fuel bills over the past year, according to government-commissioned analysis.
A review by regulator the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that the ‘principal drivers’ of high fuel costs are rising oil prices and increased profit margins at oil refineries.
The report, published this week, stated that the growing cost of oil – which is generally priced in US dollars – accounted for around a 20p per litre hike in UK fuel prices in the past 12 months. The drop in the value of the pound compared with the dollar over the same period added a further 7p per litre to fuel bills.
Weather outlook
Outbreaks of rain in the north will drift slowly eastwards today, reports BBC Weather. In the south it should be drier and sunnier, although patches of cloud and rain might may linger.
A dry and clear night for most of the country, although cloud will build in the south and the far north might hold onto the odd shower.
