Rachel Reeves has dropped a broad hint that she plans to increase employers’ national insurance contributions as part of a package of measures in the budget. If the chancellor does go ahead with what is in effect a tax on jobs she will be doing so at a time when the labour market is clearly cooling.
Make no mistake, the labour market is in pretty good shape. There are a record number of people in work and the jobless rate stands at 4%. The 14 consecutive increases in interest rates between December 2021 and August last year have proved less damaging to jobs than expected.
