Ministers Schmooze With Business Lobbyists on Same Day Labour Boosts Anti-Growth Unions – Guido Fawkes

Ministers Schmooze With Business Lobbyists on Same Day Labour Boosts Anti-Growth Unions

mdi-fullscreen

Today Labour MPs and lobbyists flocked to Soho’s swanky Ronnie Scott’s jazz club for the annual SME4Labour lunch. Sipping on pricey cocktails and fine wine, they momentarily escaped the harsh reality of Reeves’ retail-wrecking budget…

Their gourmet gathering came just hours after Labour slipped extra union-boosting measures into the Employment Rights Bill – much to the dismay of the Federation of Small Businesses and other industry groups. The glossy SME4Labour annual leaflet, handed out to the 50-odd attendees, proudly featured Cabinet members on its cover, including Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy and Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander. No Bridget Phillipson for some reason…

Among the Labour MPs enjoying the lunch were: Digital minister Feryal Clark, FCDO minister Hamish Falconer, Mike Reader, Lee Barron, Chris Webb, Rosena Allin-Khan, and Lord Peter Hain. Clark took to the stage to wax lyrical about Labour’s enthusiasm for AI and pledged that Labour would slash business rates for shops, pubs, and leisure businesses – paid for by making online giants cough up more tax. A tax and spend agenda that’s not exactly worked well for the Chancellor so far…