The cost of living crisis in the UK has taken another hit, as a key business figure has quit his role, citing the difficulty of navigating the Whitehall system.
Lord Walker of Broxton, the executive chairman of Iceland Foods, was appointed as cost of living champion by the previous prime minister but has now announced that his role has expired. He expressed his frustration with the lack of progress, stating that "daily political machinations consume everything" and that "plans are all very good but" are hindered by the current system.
Walker also criticized the No 10 building, describing it as a "17th Century rabbit-warren design that makes collaborative co-working impossible". He suggested that a new office, dubbed "No 10 North", could be established to help policy work better for every part of the country.
The resignation of Lord Walker comes as business groups are giving a cautious welcome to the new prime minister's first speech, which outlined plans for a "new economic model" and a "ten-year plan" to address the cost of living crisis.
However, business leaders are warning that firms must not be an afterthought in the new government. The director general of the British Chambers of Commerce stated that "the cost of living and the cost of doing business are two sides of the same coin" and that easing the cost of doing business will deliver the growth everyone wants to see.
The new prime minister has already pledged a 20 per cent business rates cut for pubs and high street firms, but recruiters are urging him to go further. They are calling for pragmatism in the government's employment law changes, reducing the tax wedge on hiring people, and re-invigorating the industrial strategy with reforms that will get private capital working.
However, a cold dose of realism has been offered by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, warning that the government will need to quickly flesh out its vision and be ruthless in its prioritization. The subsidies required for council housing and generous NHS settlements will mean cuts elsewhere, highlighting the challenges ahead for the new government.
The cost of living crisis is still running at 2.8 per cent, and the breathing space promised by the new prime minister cannot come soon enough for households or the firms that serve them. Delivering it from inside the Whitehall system will be the hard part.
