But being in power has proved to be much less fun, and friends are turning. At the CBI conference, attendees will hear Rain Newton-Smith, the CBI’s chief executive, attack the Budget in a damning speech, where she will argue that businesses have been “caught off guard” and are now in “damage control” mode.
“Tax rises like this must never again simply be done to business,” she will add. She will also take a pot-shot at Labour, which until recently had convinced businesses this was the party for them, by arguing that profits are not a “dirty word”.
It’s a tone she can’t avoid. The scandal-hit CBI wants to prove that it’s still Britain’s premier corporate lobbying group and a voice for business, so this is its chance to show it still has worth. Businesses feel the “line has gone dead” with politicians just as they prepare to be hammered by a £25bn tax raid on national insurance contributions paid on workers’ earnings.
Businesses that rely on low-wage, part-time staff are particularly affected as the salary threshold falls to £5,000. Six in 10 companies want to slash their hiring plans as a result of this, a CBI poll has found.
