Healey told to cut employment taxes and energy bills to boost business

Britain’s biggest business lobby group has urged John Healey to cut employment taxes and energy bills in his first Budget, warning that further tax rises risk choking off investment and jobs. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) called on the Chancellor to give firms breathing space at the Budget on 28 October, as businesses grapple with rising costs and uncertainty over the government’s tax plans. In its Budget submission, published on Thursday, the group called for a £1,000 increase in the threshold at which employers begin paying National Insurance, from £5,000 to £6,000, to encourage businesses to hire more young workers. Healey is considering measures to make it easier for firms to employ people under the age of 25, City AM previously reported. It also urged the Treasury to remove policy costs from business electricity bills, reform business rates and simplify the tax system. CBI chief executive Rain Newton-Smith warned that piling further costs onto companies