{"id":277099,"date":"2026-03-02T12:46:02","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T12:46:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/?p=277099"},"modified":"2026-03-02T12:46:02","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T12:46:02","slug":"business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/","title":{"rendered":"Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div id=\"\">\n<header class=\"article-header \"><time class=\"date-time__time\" datetime=\"2026-03-02T00:01:00+00:00\"><br \/>\nMonday 02 March 2026 12:01 am <\/time><br \/>\n|\u00a0<span class=\"date-time__updated\">\u00a0Updated:\u00a0<\/span><br \/>\n<time class=\"date-time__time\" datetime=\"2026-02-28T12:19:23+00:00\"><br \/>\nSaturday 28 February 2026 12:19 pm <\/time><\/p>\n<\/header>\n<p><!-- Ads Injected --><\/p>\n<p>Business confidence slumped back in February as directors\u2019 frustration with the state of the UK economy grew, new research has shown.<\/p>\n<p>The Institute of Directors\u2019 latest business confidence survey has uncovered bosses\u2019 exasperation with the UK economy and the level of employment taxes preventing them from taking on more workers.<\/p>\n<p>The IoD said its economic confidence index dropped from -48 in January to -63 last month. An indicator for leaders\u2019 confidence in their own businesses also fell from +14 to plus one.<\/p>\n<p>The biggest drops in confidence came around headcount expectations and revenue expectations, research showed.<\/p>\n<p>The industry group revealed that the UK\u2019s lacklustre economy was the most significant concern among over 500 respondents while <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cityam.com\/cost-of-hiring-graduates-shot-up-after-reeves-tax-raids\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">employment taxes<\/a>, heavy regulation and geopolitical tensions were also cited as impediments to growth.<\/p>\n<div class=\"newsletter-auto-inject\" style=\"margin: 20px auto;\">\n<div id=\"mc_embed_shell\">The IoD\u2019s chief economist Anna Leach said a recovery in business confidence in January had subsided, with the costs introduced by new red tape in the Employment Rights Bill now rubbing off on businesses.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cityam.com\/high-net-worth-confidence-slashed-by-tax-changes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Taxes<\/a> and regulatory compliance remain prominent concerns, and a timely reminder of the importance of the government\u2019s deregulatory agenda and the crucial need for business-friendly tax reform,\u201d Leach said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMeanwhile the latest tariff developments have undoubtedly contributed to geopolitical tensions jumping up the risk agenda in board rooms.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"read-more read-more--has-media read-more-auto\">\n<div class=\"read-more__content\">\n<h5 class=\"read-more__label\">Read more<\/h5>\n<h4 class=\"read-more__title\"><a class=\"read-more__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cityam.com\/consumer-confidence-slips-in-latest-setback-for-labour\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Consumer confidence slips in latest setback for Labour\u00a0<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cAs we approach the Spring Statement, the quietness of the newsflow around policy announcements has provided some welcome stability. But the need for swifter delivery of growth-friendly policies is increasingly urgent.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-business-confidence-means-jobs-are-cut\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Business confidence \u2018means jobs are cut\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>Shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith said the \u201cgovernment of leftists\u201d had failed to deliver business-friendly policies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFalling business confidence means jobs are cut, high streets hollowed out and families have less money at the end of the month,\u201d Griffith said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOnly the Conservatives will give businesses the environment to grow, including by abolishing business rates for thousands of pubs, restaurants and shops on our high streets.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cityam.com\/why-rachel-reeves-low-key-spring-statement-still-matters\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Spring Statement <\/a>on Tuesday is expected to only feature forecasting updates by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), as opposed to analysis of fresh government policy.<\/p>\n<p>The government has been warned that spending commitments on defence will be left unresolved for several months, with a dispute breaking out between Downing Street and the Ministry of Defence over the pace of investment in UK armed forces.<\/p>\n<p>There are also fears that a radical slowdown in immigration could hit tax receipts, though home secretary <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cityam.com\/family-visas-plummet-as-mahmood-targets-migrant-dependants\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Shabana Mahmood<\/a> is set to double down on reforms at a speech later this week.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"read-more read-more--has-media read-more-auto\">\n<div class=\"read-more__content\">\n<h5 class=\"read-more__label\">Read more<\/h5>\n<h4 class=\"read-more__title\"><a class=\"read-more__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cityam.com\/high-net-worth-confidence-slashed-by-tax-changes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">High net-worth confidence slashed by tax changes<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<footer class=\"article-footer \">\n<div class=\"tags-collection article-footer__tags-collection\">\n<h2 class=\"screen-reader-text\">Similarly tagged content:<\/h2>\n<nav class=\"tags \">\n<h3 class=\"tags__title\">Sections<\/h3>\n<\/nav>\n<nav class=\"tags \">\n<h3 class=\"tags__title\">Categories<\/h3>\n<\/nav>\n<nav class=\"tags \">\n<h3 class=\"tags__title\">People &amp; Organisations<\/h3>\n<\/nav>\n<\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<\/div>\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cityam.com\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/\">Source link <\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/contact-us\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14\" src=\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/footer-300x100.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/footer-300x100.png 300w, https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/footer-150x50.png 150w, https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/footer.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/d\/u\/1\/embed?mid=1w4tN9mf5kVdBXUXTq2KvwE23NmpUzEna\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\"><\/iframe><\/center>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: 0px #ffffff none;\" src=\"https:\/\/calendar.google.com\/calendar\/embed?src=sc635csnrm8h9s9lq0cad6vkss@group.calendar.google.com\" name=\"myiFrame\" width=\"600px\" height=\"3px\" frameborder=\"1\" marginwidth=\"0px\" marginheight=\"0px\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/center>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><center><\/center><\/p>\n<div>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.dominiclevent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Business_Solicitors_London.jpg\" width=\"600\" \/><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div>Dominic Levent Solicitors<\/div>\n<div>Email: Enquiries@dominiclevent.com<\/div>\n<div>Phone: 020 8347 6640<\/div>\n<div>Url: https:\/\/www.dominiclevent.com<\/div>\n<div style=\"display: none;\">cash, check, credit card, invoice<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<div>1345 High Rd<\/div>\n<div>London, London N20 9HR<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Monday 02 March 2026 12:01 am |\u00a0\u00a0Updated:\u00a0 Saturday 28 February 2026 12:19 pm Business confidence slumped back in February as directors\u2019 frustration with the state of the UK economy grew, new research has shown. The Institute of Directors\u2019 latest business confidence survey has uncovered bosses\u2019 exasperation with the UK economy and the level of employment &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":277112,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-277099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news1","entry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement - Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement - Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Monday 02 March 2026 12:01 am |\u00a0\u00a0Updated:\u00a0 Saturday 28 February 2026 12:19 pm Business confidence slumped back in February as directors\u2019 frustration with the state of the UK economy grew, new research has shown. The Institute of Directors\u2019 latest business confidence survey has uncovered bosses\u2019 exasperation with the UK economy and the level of employment &hellip; Continue reading &quot;Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement&quot;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-02T12:46:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/london6-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1665\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"spainops\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"spainops\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/\",\"name\":\"Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement - Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/london6-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-02T12:46:02+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/bacc79b48921539cd8fc642f86d23254\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/london6-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/london6-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1665},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/bacc79b48921539cd8fc642f86d23254\",\"name\":\"spainops\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6a2648c0ace71d8dde31f2a9e8b370b694f81d70a3ed9ccfb9ec45550a223943?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6a2648c0ace71d8dde31f2a9e8b370b694f81d70a3ed9ccfb9ec45550a223943?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"spainops\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/author\/spainops\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement - Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement - Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog","og_description":"Monday 02 March 2026 12:01 am |\u00a0\u00a0Updated:\u00a0 Saturday 28 February 2026 12:19 pm Business confidence slumped back in February as directors\u2019 frustration with the state of the UK economy grew, new research has shown. The Institute of Directors\u2019 latest business confidence survey has uncovered bosses\u2019 exasperation with the UK economy and the level of employment &hellip; Continue reading \"Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement\"","og_url":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/","og_site_name":"Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog","article_published_time":"2026-03-02T12:46:02+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1665,"url":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/london6-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"spainops","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"spainops","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/","url":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/","name":"Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement - Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/london6-scaled.jpg","datePublished":"2026-03-02T12:46:02+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/bacc79b48921539cd8fc642f86d23254"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/business-confidence-slumps-ahead-of-spring-statement\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/london6-scaled.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/london6-scaled.jpg","width":2560,"height":1665},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/","name":"Dominic Levent Solicitors Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/bacc79b48921539cd8fc642f86d23254","name":"spainops","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6a2648c0ace71d8dde31f2a9e8b370b694f81d70a3ed9ccfb9ec45550a223943?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6a2648c0ace71d8dde31f2a9e8b370b694f81d70a3ed9ccfb9ec45550a223943?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"spainops"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog"],"url":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/author\/spainops\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277099","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=277099"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277099\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":277119,"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277099\/revisions\/277119"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/277112"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=277099"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=277099"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dominiclevent.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=277099"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}