A Labour minister has revealed the big “weakness” from their early months in office that could get them “chucked out”.
Keir Starmer’s government has had a turbulent start to life in government, with freebie-gate missteps and a flailing economy seeing them come in for criticism.
The October Budget saw the Chancellor Rachel Reeves commit to several tough fiscal measures in the hope of driving growth, with many business leaders criticising the measures as being likely to have the opposite effect.
Such measures include the raising of the minimum wage and increase to national insurance contributions to help address the hole in the nation’s finances and it is the latter that one Labour Minister believes is a huge “gamble”.
Speaking to the i newspaper, they said: “We have had a tricky few months, but I am positive, it all comes down to the cost of living and the cost of borrowing coming down. If they come down, we could be in a decent place.”
A Labour Minister believes that Reeves’s increase to national insurance could get them “chucked out” (Image: Getty)
They added: “The big weakness is the national insurance decision. That was the big gamble we have taken. If that gamble doesn’t work then we deserve to get chucked out. But if businesses can get through it then we could be a good place.”
The increase in national insurance contributions has been widely criticised as being anti-business, with many businesses being forced to reconsider employing staff due to the impact on their bottom line.
Ben Hicks, 40 a café owner told the Express.co.uk that the changes were likely to cost his business around £30,000.
He said: “The national insurance increase will hit us significantly.
“With changes to minimum wage and the national insurance contribution threshold, it is basically going to impact everybody we employ, whether they are on minimum wage or not.
“We employ 22 people. That’s probably going to cost us £20,000 over the course of a year before you factor in National Insurance on top of that. All told, we’re looking at £30,000.”
Café owner Ben Hicks says the budget could add £30,000 to his bottom line (Image: Andy Commins / Daily Mirror)
Jason Shearer, 52 also works in the hospitality industry and says that the living wage has prevented him from employing staff
He said: “Minimum wage kills us, it is killing everybody, minimum wage is a joke but also increases to holiday and sick pay are ridiculous too.
“It has already been the difference between hiring somebody and not. I am working more hours because I can’t afford to take anybody else on because as soon as you do you’ve got all these costs – you just can’t afford it.
“I don’t think they realise how much of an effect it has, businesses just can’t afford to pay staff. We have had so many people coming in and asking for jobs but we just can’t take anybody on.”
This has been seen elsewhere, with research conducted by recruiter Morgan McKinley showing that job openings in the City of London have fallen to their lowest levels since 2020 with researchers laying the blame at Rachel Reeves door for fuelling a lack of employer confidence.
Mark Astbury at Morgan McKinley said: “The financial services sector in London suffered a contraction in 2024, with job availability plummeting.
“The Budget’s measures, such as the planned increase in employer National Insurance contributions, only exacerbate the strain on businesses, forcing many to implement hiring freezes or abandon growth plans altogether.”
