Latest news with #LiberalDemocrats'
New Straits Times
03-07-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
MPs back foreign investors owning minority stakes in UK newspapers
LONDON: Foreign investors have stepped closer to buying part of the British newspaper The Telegraph, as members of parliament (MPs) backed relaxed laws on foreign ownership of UK newspapers that will allow them to own up to 15 per cent. The Commons voted overwhelmingly in favour of a change to the law by Labour, which would allow foreign firms to buy minority stakes. It is the latest turn in a tumultuous two-year takeover process for the 170-year-old newspaper business. It comes after the previous Conservative government put a block in place amid fears the Telegraph could be bought by a majority-owned UAE company, RedBird IMI. The investment vehicle is a joint venture with US financiers. The regulation was approved by 338 votes to 79, majority 259. Labour was boosted in the voting lobbies by four far-right Reform UK MPs, including its leader Nigel Farage, and seven Independent MPs. Meanwhile, former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, a vocal critic of China, was among those to vote against it. The Liberal Democrats, who forced the vote over fears foreign ownership would compromise editorial independence, also opposed it. The result will give the green light to RedBird IMI, with the cap in place now being supported by MPs. RedBird Capital, the US junior partner in RedBird IMI, agreed a deal in May to buy a majority stake in the newspaper for £500 million (US$683 million). Abu Dhabi's IMI will look to buy a minority stake as part of the consortium. RedBird has investments in AC Milan, film production giant Skydance and Liverpool FC owner Fenway Sports Group. It is also understood that the Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT), which owns the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, the i, and the Metro, is also looking to buy a stake. This is in addition to Len Blavatnik, who owns the Theatre Royal Haymarket in the West End, who is considering a minority stake, according to Sky News reports. The rules were introduced after RedBird IMI looked to buy the Telegraph Media Group (TMG) from the Barclay Brothers. Former Conservative culture secretary Lucy Frazer told a Society of Editors Conference in April 2024: "I had concerns about the potential impacts of this deal on free expression and accurate presentation of news, and that's why I issued a public interest intervention." Culture Minister Stephanie Peacock told MPs last month that appropriate safeguards had been introduced. She said: "The Government need to balance the importance of creating certainty and sustainability for our newspaper industry with the need to protect against the risk of foreign state influence by setting a clear threshold for exceptions within the regime at 15 per cent. We believe that we have done that effectively." Speaking after the vote, the Liberal Democrats' spokesman on media, Max Wilkinson, said: "Freedom of the press is a historic and inviolable cornerstone of our democracy. That the government is pushing to sell off stakes in our British papers to foreign governments is astonishing. "It's outrageous that Labour and the Conservative MPs failed to stand up, do their patriotic duty and block this legislation. The leader of the opposition sponsored the Bill that restricted foreign states owning British newspapers last year — yet even she failed to vote against the measure. "Liberal Democrats have already successfully forced the government to backtrack on their senseless plan to let multiple states club together to buy whatever-sized stake in a British outlet they fancied. Now my colleagues in the Lords and I will deliver a showdown to overturn this Bill entirely — rallying Conservative and crossbench peers to defeat the government on this misguided policy."
North Wales Chronicle
12-06-2025
- Business
- North Wales Chronicle
Rachel Reeves fails to rule out future tax rises as economy shrinks
The Chancellor has repeatedly said the cost of Wednesday's spending review is covered by the tax rises she brought in last year, saying departments must now 'live within their means'. But economists have warned a weakening economy and additional commitments such as reversing much of the cut to winter fuel payments mean taxes are likely to go up again in the autumn. Asked on Thursday whether she could guarantee there would be no further tax rises, Ms Reeves told LBC: 'I think it would be very risky for a Chancellor to try and write future budgets in a world as uncertain as ours.' But she again repeated her promise that she would not need to increase taxes on the same scale as last year, when she put them up by £40 billion. She rejected the suggestion she was a 'Klarna Chancellor' who had announced a 'buy now, pay later' spending review. She said: 'The idea that yesterday I racked up a bill that I'm going to need to pay for in the future, that's just not right.' Her comments come as the Office for National Statistics reported the economy shrank by 0.3% in April – the biggest monthly contraction since October 2023 and worse than the 0.1% fall most economists had expected. In recent days, both Ms Reeves and Number 10 have said the economy is beginning to turn a corner, allowing them to fund the U-turn on the winter fuel allowance. But Thursday's worse-than-expected economic news will make it harder for Ms Reeves to balance her spending commitments with Labour's promises on tax and borrowing. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said: 'Ms Reeves is now going to have all her fingers and all her toes crossed, hoping that the OBR will not be downgrading their forecasts in the Autumn. 'With spending plans set, and 'ironclad' fiscal rules being met by gnat's whisker, any move in the wrong direction will almost certainly spark more tax rises.' The Chancellor acknowledged the reduction in GDP was 'disappointing', and blamed 'uncertainty' caused by Donald Trump's announcement of sweeping tariffs at the start of April for much of the fall. But opposition parties have laid the blame squarely with the Government, with Conservative shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride accusing Ms Reeves of 'economic vandalism'. He said: 'Under Labour, we have seen taxes hiked, inflation almost double, unemployment rise, and growth fall. With more taxes coming, things will only get worse and hard-working people will pay the price.' Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrats' Treasury spokeswoman, said the figures should act as 'a wake-up call for the Government which has so far refused to listen to the small businesses struggling to cope with the jobs tax' and urged ministers to pursue a 'bespoke UK-EU customs union' to compensate for the impact of US tariffs. The GDP figures come a day after the Chancellor revealed her spending plans for the coming years, including a significant increase in spending on the NHS, defence and schools. The biggest winner was the NHS, which will see its budget rise by £29 billion per year in real terms, leading the Resolution Foundation's Ruth Curtice to say Britain was slowly morphing into a 'National Health State'. But that rise came at the price of real-terms cuts elsewhere, including the Home Office, the Department for Transport and the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. On Thursday, Ms Reeves rejected claims her decision on policing, which will see forces' 'spending power' increase by 2.3% above inflation each year, would mean cuts to frontline police numbers.
Powys County Times
12-06-2025
- Business
- Powys County Times
Rachel Reeves fails to rule out future tax rises as economy shrinks
Rachel Reeves failed to rule out further tax rises in the autumn as new figures showed the economy shrank more than expected in April. The Chancellor has repeatedly said the cost of Wednesday's spending review is covered by the tax rises she brought in last year, saying departments must now 'live within their means'. But economists have warned a weakening economy and additional commitments such as reversing much of the cut to winter fuel payments mean taxes are likely to go up again in the autumn. Asked on Thursday whether she could guarantee there would be no further tax rises, Ms Reeves told LBC: 'I think it would be very risky for a Chancellor to try and write future budgets in a world as uncertain as ours.' But she again repeated her promise that she would not need to increase taxes on the same scale as last year, when she put them up by £40 billion. She rejected the suggestion she was a 'Klarna Chancellor' who had announced a 'buy now, pay later' spending review. She said: 'The idea that yesterday I racked up a bill that I'm going to need to pay for in the future, that's just not right.' Her comments come as the Office for National Statistics reported the economy shrank by 0.3% in April – the biggest monthly contraction since October 2023 and worse than the 0.1% fall most economists had expected. In recent days, both Ms Reeves and Number 10 have said the economy is beginning to turn a corner, allowing them to fund the U-turn on the winter fuel allowance. But Thursday's worse-than-expected economic news will make it harder for Ms Reeves to balance her spending commitments with Labour's promises on tax and borrowing. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said: 'Ms Reeves is now going to have all her fingers and all her toes crossed, hoping that the OBR will not be downgrading their forecasts in the Autumn. 'With spending plans set, and 'ironclad' fiscal rules being met by gnat's whisker, any move in the wrong direction will almost certainly spark more tax rises.' The Chancellor acknowledged the reduction in GDP was 'disappointing', and blamed 'uncertainty' caused by Donald Trump's announcement of sweeping tariffs at the start of April for much of the fall. But opposition parties have laid the blame squarely with the Government, with Conservative shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride accusing Ms Reeves of 'economic vandalism'. He said: 'Under Labour, we have seen taxes hiked, inflation almost double, unemployment rise, and growth fall. With more taxes coming, things will only get worse and hard-working people will pay the price.' Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrats' Treasury spokeswoman, said the figures should act as 'a wake-up call for the Government which has so far refused to listen to the small businesses struggling to cope with the jobs tax' and urged ministers to pursue a 'bespoke UK-EU customs union' to compensate for the impact of US tariffs. The GDP figures come a day after the Chancellor revealed her spending plans for the coming years, including a significant increase in spending on the NHS, defence and schools. The biggest winner was the NHS, which will see its budget rise by £29 billion per year in real terms, leading the Resolution Foundation's Ruth Curtice to say Britain was slowly morphing into a 'National Health State'. But that rise came at the price of real-terms cuts elsewhere, including the Home Office, the Department for Transport and the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Leader Live
12-06-2025
- Business
- Leader Live
Rachel Reeves fails to rule out future tax rises as economy shrinks
The Chancellor has repeatedly said the cost of Wednesday's spending review is covered by the tax rises she brought in last year, saying departments must now 'live within their means'. But economists have warned a weakening economy and additional commitments such as reversing much of the cut to winter fuel payments mean taxes are likely to go up again in the autumn. Asked on Thursday whether she could guarantee there would be no further tax rises, Ms Reeves told LBC: 'I think it would be very risky for a Chancellor to try and write future budgets in a world as uncertain as ours.' But she again repeated her promise that she would not need to increase taxes on the same scale as last year, when she put them up by £40 billion. She rejected the suggestion she was a 'Klarna Chancellor' who had announced a 'buy now, pay later' spending review. She said: 'The idea that yesterday I racked up a bill that I'm going to need to pay for in the future, that's just not right.' Her comments come as the Office for National Statistics reported the economy shrank by 0.3% in April – the biggest monthly contraction since October 2023 and worse than the 0.1% fall most economists had expected. In recent days, both Ms Reeves and Number 10 have said the economy is beginning to turn a corner, allowing them to fund the U-turn on the winter fuel allowance. But Thursday's worse-than-expected economic news will make it harder for Ms Reeves to balance her spending commitments with Labour's promises on tax and borrowing. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said: 'Ms Reeves is now going to have all her fingers and all her toes crossed, hoping that the OBR will not be downgrading their forecasts in the Autumn. 'With spending plans set, and 'ironclad' fiscal rules being met by gnat's whisker, any move in the wrong direction will almost certainly spark more tax rises.' The Chancellor acknowledged the reduction in GDP was 'disappointing', and blamed 'uncertainty' caused by Donald Trump's announcement of sweeping tariffs at the start of April for much of the fall. But opposition parties have laid the blame squarely with the Government, with Conservative shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride accusing Ms Reeves of 'economic vandalism'. He said: 'Under Labour, we have seen taxes hiked, inflation almost double, unemployment rise, and growth fall. With more taxes coming, things will only get worse and hard-working people will pay the price.' Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrats' Treasury spokeswoman, said the figures should act as 'a wake-up call for the Government which has so far refused to listen to the small businesses struggling to cope with the jobs tax' and urged ministers to pursue a 'bespoke UK-EU customs union' to compensate for the impact of US tariffs. The GDP figures come a day after the Chancellor revealed her spending plans for the coming years, including a significant increase in spending on the NHS, defence and schools. The biggest winner was the NHS, which will see its budget rise by £29 billion per year in real terms, leading the Resolution Foundation's Ruth Curtice to say Britain was slowly morphing into a 'National Health State'. But that rise came at the price of real-terms cuts elsewhere, including the Home Office, the Department for Transport and the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. On Thursday, Ms Reeves rejected claims her decision on policing, which will see forces' 'spending power' increase by 2.3% above inflation each year, would mean cuts to frontline police numbers.
Evening Standard
12-06-2025
- Business
- Evening Standard
Rachel Reeves fails to rule out future tax rises as economy shrinks
Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrats' Treasury spokeswoman, said the figures should act as 'a wake-up call for the Government which has so far refused to listen to the small businesses struggling to cope with the jobs tax' and urged ministers to pursue a 'bespoke UK-EU customs union' to compensate for the impact of US tariffs.
