Planning for the worst

M&S boss warns customer confidence dented by Budget worries

The boss of Marks & Spencer has said Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s pre-Budget speech had fuelled customer worries over tax hikes and warned shoppers were now “planning for the worst”.

Chief executive Stuart Machin said the retailer’s customers were “increasingly concerned about rising costs and taxes” and what might be in store in the upcoming Budget.

He said the Chancellor’s unusual step to deliver a pre-Budget speech on Tuesday did not help ease fears or give certainty to businesses and consumers.


Hmm - it's probably much more than Budget worries. Having to make a pre-Budget speech was bound to remind people yet again that this is the worst government in living memory, Keir Starmer the worst Prime Minister and Rachel Reeves the worst Chancellor.

Whether or not Labour voters know it, they are to a significant degree voting for the Fabian Society. This goes some way to explain the teenage ideology behind the absurd mess the party is making of its Parliamentary majority.

According to Copilot AI -

Senior government posts, including Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves, and Wes Streeting, are confirmed Fabian members, signaling continued influence at leadership and ministerial levels

While the Fabian Society does not openly publish a comprehensive list of its Labour MP members, credible sources and historical records indicate that approximately 200–220 Labour MPs are members of the Fabian Society, encompassing the leader, many cabinet members, and senior figures across the party. This represents a significant proportion of the parliamentary Labour cohort.