Keir Starmer defends Labour's tax hikes and employment rights red tape as business chiefs warn burden must not be increased again
Keir Starmer defended Labour's tax hikes and employment rights red tape today as business chiefs warned the burden must not be increased again.
The PM admitted the government had 'asked a lot' of firms as he addressed the British Chambers of Commerce conference in London.
However, he argued that money from the monster national insurance increase had been needed to 'fix the foundations' of the country, by propping up the NHS and investing in skills and infrastructure.
The head of the BCC has sent a stark message at the gathering that companies are already 'wading through treacle' thanks to government policy, and cutting back on hiring.
There is alarm that more pain is looming, as Rachel Reeves desperately struggles to balance the books with the economy stalling and Labour MPs forcing U-turns on benefits cuts.
The BCC said a third of small and medium-sized firms have made staff redundant or are thinking about job cuts as a direct result of the NICs increase.
Some 13 per cent of more than 570 members surveyed had already cut jobs and 19 per cent were actively considering it.
Speaking after Sir Keir, BCC director general Shevaun Haviland insisted the Chancellor cannot increase the burden again.
'There must be no further tax increases on business in the Autumn Budget,' she said.
'Business leaders are resilient, but they are also flexible.
'Some of our well thought-out business plans sometimes no longer meet our needs. When the facts change, so do we.
'And the Government needs to take the same approach.
'If the UK economy is subject to any further economic shock, such as a sustained spike in oil prices, then we need fiscal rules that are responsive and protect business investment.'
In his speech, Sir Keir said firms were responsible for 'creating the jobs, the wealth, the tax receipts that means that we have the opportunity to change our country for the better'.
'I fully acknowledge, and I do acknowledge here, that this year, as we've had to fix the foundations of our country, deal with the unprecedented mess that we inherited, we have asked a lot of you,' he said.
'I understand that and I want to acknowledge that.
'It has made a huge difference. Because of it, the money has gone into the NHS and waiting lists are coming down.
'We have put investment into the skills of our young people, the new homes, new roads, new infrastructure that we're building, they are all vital for the long-term growth of our country.
'But none of that would have been possible without your contribution. And I say thank you. It's what I mean by partnership.'
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The Guardian
28 minutes ago
- The Guardian
‘Unless you see it, you can't believe how bad it is': the peer demanding a minister for porn
When the Conservative peer Gabby Bertin arrived for a meeting with the the science and technology secretary, Peter Kyle, earlier this year she startled him by laying out an array of pornographic images across his desk. 'They were screengrabs showing little girls, their hair in bunches, and massive, grown men grabbing little girls' throats,' she says. She had selected images which appeared to depict child abuse, and yet were easily and legally available on a popular website. 'Unless you see it, you can't quite believe how bad it is.' The minister appeared shocked and upset by the images, she recalls, so she quickly tidied them away and later shredded them. Bertin has noticed that her desire to talk frequently and openly about extreme pornography is not shared by all her Westminster colleagues. 'I've definitely seen people swerve at lunch, not wanting to sit next to me for fear of what they're going to hear coming from my mouth,' she told fellow delegates at the launch meeting of her pornography taskforce this week, prompting a flutter of sympathetic laughter. Since being appointed by the former prime minister Rishi Sunak to lead an independent review into the regulation of online pornography in December 2023, Bertin has observed how a double taboo has made most politicians extremely reluctant to engage. Some simply find the subject hugely embarrassing; others stay silent because they do not wish to appear prudish by criticising the proliferation of extreme and often illegal pornographic material online. She is frustrated by this reticence. 'You can't leave the pitch on this stuff just because you're worried about being accused of being too strait-laced,' she says. The government needs urgently to appoint a minister for porn, she recommends, to ensure that the issue gets the attention it deserves, rather than being passed reluctantly between the Home Office and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. A former adviser to David Cameron, Bertin has gathered cross-party support for her work and says she emails Keir Starmer so regularly about the issue that she has 'practically become his pen pal' (if you can have a pen pal who delegates to officials the responsibility of replying). 'We're really British about it so we don't want to have a graphic conversation about sex and porn,' she says, in an interview in the Westminster office she shares with several other peers. 'But you've got to shout about it as loudly as possible. The reason why we've got into this mess is because nobody has really wanted to talk about it.' By mess she means a situation whereby online pornography (which is viewed by an estimated 13.8 million UK adults every month) is not regulated to the same degree as pornography watched in cinemas or videos, despite the fact that videos have been redundant for decades and vanishingly few people now visit cinemas to watch porn. The absence of scrutiny has created an environment where much of the content created is, she says, 'violent, degrading, abusive, and misogynistic'. She also means a situation where a member of her own party had to resign after twice watching porn (perplexingly tractor-themed) on his phone, as he whiled away time on the green benches in the House of Commons. 'People have slightly lost the plot on porn. Would someone 20 years ago have just taken Playboy into the Commons, and had it lying on their lap? It just shows what an extraordinary place we've got to,' she says. 'You can do what you like in your private life – I don't have a problem with that – but you can't watch porn in the House of Commons, and you shouldn't be watching porn at your desk. There's a place for these things and it's not in the office.' Her review, published in February, made 32 recommendations. Last week the first of these became government policy, when officials announced that pornography depicting strangulation would be made illegal. Her new taskforce of 17 people, bringing together representatives from the police, the advertising industry, anti-trafficking organisations and violence against women charities, will focus on how to ensure harmful online content is better regulated, trying to bring parity between the scrutiny of offline and online content. She pays tribute to the 'hugely innovative side' of the porn industry, which has long driven technological advances in webcams and internet speeds, fuelled by the sector's enormous capacity to turn profit, but she has not invited any representatives on to the taskforce, wary of anything that might let the industry 'mark their own homework'. This week Ofcom announced that major online providers, including the UK's most popular pornography site, Pornhub, had agreed to implement stronger age-verification measures in compliance with the Online Safety Act, to prevent under-18s from accessing adult material. Those platforms that do not comply with the measures face being fined 10% of global turnover or being blocked in the UK. Ofcom is also responsible for monitoring whether sites distributing user-generated pornography are protecting UK viewers from encountering illegal material involving child sexual abuse and extreme content (showing rape, bestiality and necrophilia, for example). However, other forms of harmful pornography that are regulated in physical formats are not subject to similar restrictions online. It is this grey, unscrutinised area that Bertin's panel will focus on, as well as calling for better processes to respond to stolen content, working out how people depicted in pornographic videos can request that the clips be removed from sites, and how to build safety mechanisms into AI tools that create sexually explicit content. Officials at the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) guided her through short clips of extreme material to help her understand the nature of easily available harmful content. She remains disturbed by the material she saw – content designed to appear to be child sexual abuse, set in children's bedrooms – roles played by young girls, who may be over 18 but are acting as children. 'The titles are very problematic, things like: 'Daddy's going to come home and give his daughter a good seeing to' or 'Oops I've gone too far and now she's dead' or 'Kidnap and kill a hooker.'' This content would be prohibited by the BBFC in the offline world, but is unregulated online. During research for her review, she met representatives from global tech companies, and told them how when Volvo invented the three-point safety belt they gifted the patent to the rest of the industry because staff realised the innovation was so vital to raising safety standards. 'My pitch was that they have a duty and responsibility to double down on trying to get technology that can clean up these situations, and they should share that technology,' she says. 'Taylor Swift can whip a song off a website as soon as anyone tries to pirate it. There's no reason why the firms can't come up with technology to sort this out.' Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Posing for photographs, she edges away from a watercolour of Margaret Thatcher hung on the wall by one of her colleagues. 'Let's do it without Thatcher in the background. That's not my doing by the way – I share the office,' she says semi-apologetically, before rapidly adding: 'I mean I love Thatcher, obviously.' But she may be making an important distinction. In a 1970 Woman's Hour interview, Thatcher said the rise of pornography was a 'frightening' manifestation of a newly permissive society that she believed was undermining family life. Bertin describes herself as a liberal conservative and wants to be clear she is neither anti-porn nor running a moral crusade. 'Consenting adults should be able to do what they want; I have no desire to stop any kind of sexual freedom. But restricting people from seeing a woman being choked, called a whore, and having several men stamp on her – for example – is not ending someone's sexual freedom. This is the kind of content we want to end.'
The Sun
31 minutes ago
- The Sun
High street giant to shut UK store TODAY after announcing 33 shop closures with hundreds of jobs at risk
A MAJOR clothing retailer is set to shut down a branch today - ahead of 33 more store closures. It comes as part of a proposed restructuring plan that aims to save the company from insolvency. River Island in Banbury, Oxfordshire is set to close on June 28, as shoppers will now have to travel to Rugby or Oxford to visit a brick-and-mortar shop. It's part of a wider plan to close 33 branches across the UK, affecting hundreds of jobs. River Island also wants its landlords to cut rent at an additional 71 stores that are struggling. The restructuring plan, developed with PricewaterhouseCoopers, will be put to creditors in August. A restructuring plan should help keep the company afloat and avoid insolvency. The decision was due to a shift in customers shopping online, as well as increased running costs. Ben Lewis, chief executive of River Island said: "River Island is a much-loved retailer, with a decades-long history on the British high street. "However the well-documented migration of shoppers from the high street to online has left the business with a large portfolio of stores that is no longer aligned to our customers' needs. "The sharp rise in the cost of doing business over the last few years has only added to the financial burden. 'We have a clear strategy to transform the business to ensure its long-term viability. "Recent improvements in our fashion offer and in-store shopping experience are already showing very positive results, but it is only with a restructuring plan that we will be able to see this strategy through and secure River Island's future as a profitable retail business. "We regret any job losses as a result of store closures, and we will try to keep these to a minimum.' River Island was founded in 1948 by Bernard Lewis and currently operates in around 230 stores, employing 5,500 people. It suffered losses of £33.2 million in 2023 after sales fell 19% according to the most recent set of accounts. The proposals will not affect trade creditors, employees at unaffected stores, or customers. Staff will be redeployed where possible to reduce job losses. The majority of the closures will come in January 2026. It comes as several major retailers struggle to survive on the high street. Popular clothing retailer New Look has already closed ten stores this year, with another two set to close in the coming weeks. Several banks have also undergone major restructuring plans - as NatWest is closing 55 stores this year, and Santander closes 95. After Poundland sold for £1 earlier this month, the company announced an upcoming 68 store closures. 2
Daily Mail
37 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
I was a Question Time panellist on an episode that left viewers LIVID - Fiona Bruce showed her true colours when the cameras stopped rolling
YouTuber TommyInnit's mum has revealed what it was really like starring on Question Time - including her experience with BBC host Fiona Bruce. The internet star, who goes by the real name of Thomas Michael Simons, 21, had his mum Sarah Simons in the audience when he took part in the show - and she went on to appear on the panel backstage during a recent episode of the BBC programme. Last Thursday's episode (19 June) saw the YouTuber, 21, Katharine Birbalsingh, 52, Adolescence writer Jack Thorne, 46, the secretary of state for science and technology Peter Kyle, 54, and MP Lord Willetts, 69, discuss on challenges growing up in the 21st century. Sarah took to her X account to share how much of a good time she had while appearing on the show. Sharing some pictures of her and her son in the studio, alongside a selfie with host Fiona, 61, she wrote: 'It was a surreal and wonderful experience to watch my lad be brilliant on BBC Question Time tonight. So proud of him.' She added: 'Obvs we did a few daft pics too. LOVE Fiona Bruce, she was glorious, and the BBC team was so kind and welcoming.' Many rushed to reply to the tweet to share the love. 'Absolutely LOVE this!! QT already my favourite Thursday tradition so this is a crossover…' 'Totally impressive performance by Tom last night. Measured and charming, a great combination. Distinct lack of young uns. Blaming the tools rather than their application.' 'That's amazing! Well done to both of you.' While watching the installment last week, some viewers shared how odd they thought it was that only one person on the panel was under the age of 45. Many took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share their thoughts. 'I thought the Youth focused #bbcqt was a great and overdue idea. Until I saw the panel had an average age older than me.' 'Next generation you say?' 'Why is there only 1 actual youngish person on this panel? Comedy.' 'The average age of the panellists debating what it's like being young in Britain today? 48. Farcical.' At the start of the episode, Fiona said: 'For tonight's question time, we're asking a specially convened panel and audience about the challenges of growing up in the 21st century and what it means for all of us. 'Roughly half our audience is from what very generation - under 30 or mostly Gen Z and the rest are just a little bit older, but like every other week, they reflect the range of political views across the country. 'Welcome to Question Time - the next generation - from Greenford in West London on BBC, iPlayer and Sounds.' Despite their ages, the guests do all have their own opinions from their fields about the matter. Katharine Birbalsingh is a headteacher at the Michaela Community School. Many took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share their thoughts She is known to be the 'UK's strictest headmistress'. Meanwhile Jack's latest Netflix hit Adolescence hit headlines earlier this year. Back in April it was revealed that 114 million people had watched the drama - which follows the story of a boy called Jamie Miller (Owen Cooper), who murdered his female classmate. It brought misogyny among young boys to light and the resulting potential for violence against women. TommyInnit - real name Thomas Michael Simons - has 15.1M subscribers on YouTube. Meanwhile Peter Kyle and Lord Willetts are figures in the political sphere.
