It never rains but it pours for Rachel Reeves – today’s rise in inflation to 3.6 per cent was higher than expected, and there was a ghost at the feast as the chancellor delivered her Mansion House speech last night – her Budget in the autumn.
The audience at her City of London dinner broadly welcomed her relaxation of financial services regulations, but wondered whether her next act in this arena will be hostile: there is speculation the Budget will include a levy on the banks’ profits and a wider wealth tax.
