Ministers are sacrificing growth for votes, say top business bosses

Government ministers have undermined the UK’s long-term economic interests by becoming “trapped” into making poor short-term policy decisions to appease voters, Britain’s top business bosses have warned.

The group of corporate leaders, which include Natwest chair Rick Haythornthwaite, Heathrow chair Philip Jansen and Barratt Redrow chair Caroline Silver, said successive governments have failed to prioritise long-term strategic decision-making.

“The difficult trade-offs needed to strengthen the UK economy must be set out clearly and command broad support – something our politics has historically lacked,” bosses wrote in a letter to the Times newspaper.

“Future generations will inherit the consequences of our short-termism. They are optimistic and deserve better.”

The group, which also includes SSE chair Sir John Manzoni and Legal & General chair designate Scott Wheway, have formed what they have called the “2030 Prosperity Alliance” in a bid to “fill that gap” left by a lack of long-term planning.

“Our analysis seeks to inform policymakers and test competing solutions with businesses and the public,” the group said in the letter.

“We are an apolitical campaign focused on harnessing Britain’s competitive advantages to provide a decade of rising prosperity and close the “inaction gap” between what the country needs and what politics alone can do.”

Sunak calls for reset on taxing work amid long-term AI threat

The business bosses’ remarks come as former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called for a rethink of how work is taxed, warning that AI is beginning to shift hiring patterns as companies weigh the cost of people against automation.

Sunak said employers face immediate costs when hiring through national insurance contributions (NIC), while deploying AI carries no equivalent tax burden, which is a gap he suggested could become more significant as businesses adopt the technology.

“You are far more likely to lose your job to someone using AI than to AI itself”, the former prime minister wrote.

His intervention comes as early signs emerge that AI is starting to affect hiring rather than outright employment levels.

Research from Anthropic found no clear rise in unemployment in AI-exposed roles since the launch of generative AI tools, but pointed to a slowdown in hiring, particularly among younger workers.

Job entry rates for those aged 22 to 25 in exposed occupations have fallen compared with pre-2022 levels.