By DAILY MAIL COMMENT

Published: 22:00 GMT, 9 January 2026 | Updated: 01:45 GMT, 10 January 2026

Without a hint of irony, Labour party chairman Anna Turley said on Friday: ‘Our priority is to make sure business can thrive and flourish and that our High Streets are full of life.’

What a hollow laugh that risible declaration must have raised among company bosses in the retail and hospitality sectors who are reeling from this Government’s ruinous tax policies.

Before the election, Labour claimed it would be ‘the party of business’. Every day since it has proved to be anything but.

Two disastrous Rachel Reeves budgets have loaded crippling tax burdens on firms still trying to recover from the Covid lockdowns. The minimum wage rise has further increased costs, while the workers’ rights bill has added onerous regulation and actively discouraged businesses from hiring new staff.

As a result, unemployment is at a five-year high and inflation is expected to be the worst of any G7 country this year. A new British Chamber of Commerce survey shows business confidence plunging.

With a strong hand on the tiller, a recovery could be mounted. But it would require a genuine attempt to free business from its chains and to bring public spending under control. This hapless, ham-fisted Government has neither the will nor the strength to do either.

The central problem is the vast majority of Labour MPs, including Cabinet members, have no experience of running a business nor any conception of how one works.

They have never spent sleepless nights worrying whether they can stay afloat or gone through the pain of having to lay off staff when times are hard.

Sir Keir Starmer (pictured, centre) has performed no fewer than 12 major U-turns since July 4 (file photo)

Two disastrous Rachel Reeves budgets have loaded crippling tax burdens on firms still trying to recover from the Covid lockdowns (file photo)

Most have never even had a job in private industry, having come to Parliament through the state sector, trade unions or charities. They have no entrepreneurial drive themselves and are suspicious of those who have. Business is seen not as an engine of growth but a cash cow to be milked.

Small wonder then that the Government’s business and economic policies are in such a steaming mess. Over 18 months in power, we have seen an almost unbelievable level of incompetence.

Policies are dashed off without a thought to the consequences, then greeted with howls of outrage, then reconsidered, then junked. Sir Keir Starmer has performed no fewer than 12 major U-turns since July 4.