Business leaders told the chancellor firms’ ability to hire more young workers
will depend on the scale of tax increases in the Oct. 28 budget, according to
people familiar with the discussions. The prime minister and the chancellor met
business leaders on Tuesday; firms have lobbied to avoid further tax rises after
recent budgets raised the tax burden. The chancellor held a breakfast with
retail, hospitality and leisure executives, including Amazon UK head John
Boumphrey, British Retail Consortium chief Helen Dickinson and UKHospitality CEO
Allen Simpson, focusing on youth unemployment and measures to get
16–24-year-olds back into work. Businesses also raised concerns about business
rates. Nearly 1.0 mln 16–24-year-olds are unemployed, with youth unemployment at
its highest level since 2014.
