When she arrived in the City of London on Thursday evening, chancellor Rachel Reeves was on a rescue mission. Labour’s relations with business, carefully nurtured over years of breakfast meetings in the run-up to July’s election, had soured after last month’s tax-raising Budget. Mingling in the champagne reception ahead of the Mansion House address, one executive who supported the party publicly before the election complained they had been “shit” since taking office.
Official growth forecasts do not include the potential effect of planned reforms, such as the streamlining of the planning system, which ministers hope will speed up investment and spur growth. The government has also promised a full industrial strategy in the new year. Disquiet has been building since Labour took power.