Business leaders urge UK Government to scrap tourist tax, and shop price inflation falls

1. Business leaders are piling fresh pressure on the government to scrap its controversial tourist tax as data shows it is eating away at the UK’s GDP and banishing international visitors. FTSE 100 bosses, including Stuart Machin, the chief of M&S and Paul Marchant the boss of Primark are among the now 420 signatories writing to the Chancellor urging him to reintroduce the VAT scheme. 2. Shop price inflation fell to its lowest level since May 2022, helped by supermarkets continually slashing their prices. A new reading by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) showed shop price inflation eased to 2.9 per cent in January, down from 4.3 per cent in December. 3. One in five 16 to 25-year-olds have missed school or work in the last year because of their mental health, new research has found. The Prince’s Trust NatWest Youth Index 2024 also found similar numbers did not apply for jobs because of a mental health issue, and that it worsened in the last year. #tourist #ukgovernment #jeremyhunt #primark #ftse100 #ukbusiness #gdp #inflation #costofliving #mentalhealth #youth #uknews #trendingnews