UK Founders Express Skepticism Over Burnham’s Pro-Business Push Ahead of Autumn Budget

A significant majority of Britain’s leading scale-up founders believe operating conditions for businesses will not improve under Prime Minister Andy Burnham, with only one in 20 entrepreneurs viewing the administration as pro-business.

According to a survey conducted by Helm—a prominent network representing over 400 scale-up founders generating a combined £8 billion in annual revenue—pessimism is growing across the private sector ahead of the upcoming October Budget.

Survey Highlights Industry Disconnect

• Pro-Business Sentiment: Just 6% of surveyed founders consider Andy Burnham to be pro-business.
• Outlook on Business Conditions: 83% of respondents expect economic conditions for private enterprise to either stagnate or deteriorate further.
• Pessimism Index: Nearly half of the surveyed entrepreneurs reported feeling explicitly pessimistic about the administration’s trajectory.

The findings reflect mounting fears across commercial sectors that the government may target corporate revenues and capital gains to finance substantial public expenditure commitments. A parallel survey of UK manufacturers echoed similar concerns, showing falling sentiment levels tied to prospective tax increases.

Calls to Address Employers’ National Insurance and Tax Uncertainty

Andreas Adamides, Chief Executive of Helm, noted that a considerable “trust deficit” remains despite recent announcements, such as business rate cuts for pub landlords:

“He did not impose the tax rises of the last two years, but he owns them now. Reversing the employers’ national insurance rise in his first 100 days would be the clearest possible signal that this government understands who creates growth.”

Adamides added that ongoing public debate surrounding potential wealth taxes and exit levies creates investment paralysis:

“What business leaders cannot afford is another summer of speculation about wealth taxes and exit charges, because uncertainty stops investment just as surely as tax does.”

Fiscal Pressures Facing the Treasury

During the Makerfield by-election campaign, Prime Minister Burnham hinted at reviewing added business overheads resulting from previous National Insurance increases, which raised approximately £25 billion annually but placed heavy pressure on employment.

However, any policy reversal presents immediate challenges for Chancellor John Healey. The Treasury faces mounting fiscal constraints, including commitments to raise defense spending to 3% of GDP by 2030 (costing an additional £9 billion annually), ongoing energy market volatility, and national debt interest payments projected to exceed £110 billion this financial year.

Source / Reference: City A.M.