What does Chancellor John Healey's 2026 budget mean for business?

In this episode of The Business, Dominic O’Connell is joined by Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates, and Shevaun Haviland, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, to unpack an Autumn Budget designed to give British people ‘breathing room’.

At the despach box the chancellor said: "Too many people feel this country isn't working well for them, and in particular, households and businesses face challenges from rising energy costs due directly to the conflict in the Middle East. In the face of that, what matters is how we respond as a government. And my choice in the budget today is to give families and businesses some breathing space now, and to begin the radical reform of energy to reduce bills in the future."

They examine how the Chancellor plans to balance short-term household relief with long-term economic growth. We break down the cash ISA U-turn, capital gains tax adjustments, and the new Founders’ Relief, dissecting the practical realities for British business owners and leaders.

They also explore the devolution of business rates, and what this Autumn Budget means for high streets facing mounting costs.

The Business is sponsored by PwC

Guest:

• Shevaun Haviland, Director General of British Chambers of Commerce
• Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates

Presenter:

• Dominic O’Connell, Times columnist and Times Radio business correspondent

Producer: Hope Federico

Executive Producer: Miriam Hall and Emily Leahy

Image: Getty

Get in touch: thebusiness@thetimes.com

More from The Times

• Budget 2026 key points: a summary of the highlights
• What the budget means for you

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• Taylor Wimpey: Can Labour fix the UK’s broken housing market?
• Can Labour really reindustrialise Britain?

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did Hawksmoor grow from a single Shoreditch steakhouse into a global brand, and can UK hospitality survive rising tax burdens?

In this episode of The Business, Hawksmoor co-founder and Chief Executive Will Beckett joins Hannah Prevett at Hawksmoor St Pancras to reflect on what he's learned from 20 years in British business, and what UK hospitality wants from Chancellor John Healey's budget.

He breaks down the harsh financial pressures facing the industry, including how tax changes, rising business rates, and employment legislation impact hospitality margins.

“I know that the hospitality industry would like me to say, ‘big, sweeping change’ - I just think it's unlikely,” he tells the programme. “Anything that is just relieving the tax burden or relieving the pressure slightly, that, in a way that would help smaller independent businesses flourish, I think has to be good news.”

Beckett, who runs the business alongside his co-founder, Creative Director Huw Gott, also discusses scaling the steakhouse chain across London and taking on private equity investment to take the brand to the US with major openings in New York, Chicago, and Boston.

"We've learned about how to pitch Britishness and London. Boston's really well known for lobster rolls, but in Hawksmoor Boston, we do a lobster crumpet.”

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow this podcast.

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Guest:

• Will Beckett, chief executive and co-founder of Hawksmoor

Presenter:

• Hannah Prevett, associate business editor of The Sunday Times

Producer: Hope Federico

Executive Producer: Miriam Hall and Emily Leahy

Get in touch: thebusiness@thetimes.com

More from The Times

• I was a jack of all trades until I sunk my teeth into Hawksmoor
• How a very British steakhouse won over New York

More from The Business

• Will the Chancellor Increase Capital Gains Tax in the Budget?
• The Employment Rights Act: A Generational Shift for British Business

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What does it take to become a top football agent in the UK? From negotiating million-pound contracts, to managing player transfers, a football agent holds the power to change the game long before players walk onto the pitch.

In this episode of The Business, we explore the high-stakes world of sports management, where agent fees topped £400 million in the Premier League last year. Jo Tongue, leading football agent and chief executive of Tongue Tied Management, joins Hannah Prevett, associate business editor at The Sunday Times, to take us behind the scenes of commercial deal making in football.

Jo discusses managing players' careers, negotiating commercial deals, and representing some of the biggest names across British football, including the manager of Manchester United, Michael Carrick.

As a board member of Women in Football, Jo also reflects on working in a male-dominated industry and addressing the persistent inequalities facing female sports professionals.

On social media she says abuse "is rife for women, to the point where I think a lot of females just go, ‘I'm just not gonna put anything out there because it's just not worth the stress."

More from the Times:

‘It never occurred to me that I couldn’t succeed in football as a girl’

Michael Carrick hails ‘fresh start’ but one win in seven tells own story

More from the Business

Beyond TV: How Trinny Woodall Built A Beauty Brand

“I was ashamed”: How failure built Castore

Guests:

Jo Tongue, football agent and chief executive of Tongue Tied Management

Presenter:

Hannah Prevett, associate business editor at The Sunday Times

Producer: Hope Federico

Executive Producer: Miriam Hall and Emily Leahy

Video Producer: Super Llama

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.