General Election 2024: What a Labour Government Means for Your Business

In this blog post, we review the party’s key pledges that will impact our specialist sectors and include commentary from our sector leads on how these expected changes may affect your businesses going forward. 

General business 

• Cap corporation tax at the current level of 25%  
• Plan for small business support – take action on late payments and reform the British Business Bank and more access to government contracts   
• Improving workers' rights – remove zero-hour contracts and ban fire-and-rehire practices  
• Establish Great British Energy – a public entity focused on lowering costs   
• Replace business rates with a new system which “balances the burden and levels the playing field between our high streets and online giants”  
  

Pharmacy 

• Pledge to introduce a Community Pharmacist Prescribing Service which will grant more pharmacists independent prescribing rights to reduce pressures on GPs  
  

Care 

• Plan to integrate health and care services to improve patient treatment by trialling Neighbourhood Health Centres. These will bring together existing services such as family doctors, care workers, district nurses, physiotherapists, palliative care and mental health specialists under one roof  
• Undertake a programme of reform to create a National Care Service, underpinned by national standards, to deliver consistent care across the country, with a principle of ‘home first’ supporting people to live independently for longer  
• Work with employers, trade unions and government to establish a Fair Pay Agreement in adult social care  
  

Childcare & Education 

• Over three thousand new nursery classes across England to open up access to childcare hours for families. Spare school classrooms will be converted into high-quality spaces for nurseries, paid for by ending the tax breaks private schools enjoy 
• Labour Lords have already ended the outdated restrictions preventing councils offering childcare themselves 
• To deliver childcare to half a million more children, hitting the Early Learning Goals by 2030 
• A new focus on supporting language skills and maths learning right from the start 
• Support staff working in childcare & early education so they are recognised for the skilled and important work they are doing 
• Sir David Bell, former chief inspector of Ofsted, has been commissioned to look at how we can drive up standards in childcare in England 
• Deliver the enhanced entitlements the Government has offered, saving thousands of pounds a year for working families 
• Support three quarters of a million more parents to re-enter the labour market 
• Provide free breakfast clubs in every primary school in England, paid for by ending tax loopholes and clamping down on tax evasion 
• Give parents choices for an earlier start to the working day – helping families to get on not just get by 
  

Dentistry 

• Plan to provide 700,000 more urgent care dental appointments and recruit new dentists to areas in need 
• Plan to reform the dental contract with a shift in focus to prevention and retention of NHS dentists  
  

Hospitality & Leisure 

• Replace the business rates system with a new, fairer system  
• Reform the Apprenticeship Levy by creating a Growth and Skills Levy 
  

Convenience Retail & Forecourts 

• Introduce a generational ban on purchasing tobacco products 
• Ban vapes from being branded and advertised to appeal to children 
• Ban on advertising junk food to children  
• Ban on selling high caffeine energy drinks to under 16s 
• Strengthen the Post Office network and support the development of new products, services and business models that will help reinvigorate the high street 
• Introduce a new Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee including the recruitment of thousands of new officers and a new specific offence for assaults on shopworkers that will protect them from threats and violence 
• Restoring the phase out date of 2030 for new ICE vehicles 

Views from our experts…  

Tony Evans, Head of Pharmacy at Christie & Co, comments, “With Labour winning a landslide victory, it will be interesting to see how quickly it implements its manifesto promises for primary care and more importantly the pharmacy sector. An early resolution to the funding negotiations cannot come soon enough for operators having to continually endure the pressures the Five-Year deal created.” 

Courteney Donaldson, Managing Director – Childcare & Education at Christie & Co, comments, “Very shortly, we’re likely to see Bridget Phillipson - who has served as the Shadow Secretary of State for Education since 2021 - be appointed as the new Education Minister. At the Labour Party conference in Autumn 2023, Bridget made it clear that the Labour Party would work tirelessly to end profiteering across the children’s social care sector.  

“Labour has pledged over 3,000 new nursery classes across England to open up access to childcare hours for families, with spare school classrooms to be converted into high-quality spaces for nurseries. While this could increase capacity, in a typical school classroom, it is not necessarily an appropriate space for a nursery-aged child – inadequate toilet facilities, access to direct age-appropriate outdoor access, sleep areas, etc. Equally, it is of the utmost importance that services are not duplicated. It remains to be seen how the intended creation of new provisions will work in practice. Also, given the commitment that Labour has made regarding the removal of VAT breaks for private schools, it is to be expected that there may well be a significant increase in demand for places from pupils transitioning from independent schools thus, where these unused classrooms are set to be repurposed, such space may no longer remain available.  

“Governments over the past 20 to 25 years have failed to acknowledge the importance of early childhood education – how it benefits children, working parents, and those in education or training, nor the forward-looking benefits and economic prospects for our country as a whole. So, Labour’s pledge to ‘support staff working in Childcare & Education so they are recognised for the important work…’ is vital. There hasn’t been any detail on how they will do this yet.  

“Labour also pledged in its manifesto to commit to the ‘enhanced entitlements’ the Government has offered. Further clarity is needed on whether they will commit to increasing the rates in line with inflation in the future, something that historically has not happened. 

“One final point that is important for owners to bear in mind, is the potential for changes to Capital Gains Tax in the future. While Labour has pledged not to increase Corporation Tax, Income Tax, National Insurance or VAT, they have not explicitly ruled out increasing the rate at which capital gains are taxed, and it would not be unreasonable to suggest this could come into focus either in their first Autumn Statement or, more likely, at next year’s Spring Budget.” 

Steve Rodell, Managing Director – Retail & Leisure at Christie & Co, comments, “Labour has pledged to support wealth creation by encouraging investment. This is ultimately likely to be achieved by leaning on the private sector as there is no significant public money. Presumably, this will be delivered by tax breaks for businesses which could be helpful if you intend investing in your property, workforce or technology.  

“Any windfall taxes on "big energy" (including oil companies) are likely to be an own goal and may even face legal challenges as Oil Cos are trying to transition from fossil fuels. How does Labour expect the very significant switch to be funded? The most likely route is to use profits from existing operations. Labour has such a large emphasis on green energy, their own policy might trip them up. 

“Labour has also pledged to restore the 2030 ban on new ICE vehicle. In my opinion, this is simply unachievable, and Labour could end up with egg on their face. Vauxhall (manufacture in Luton & Ellesmere Port) said publicly the 2035 ban was already impossible to meet. 

“The EV market share was just 16% in the first five months of 2024, indicating demand is not there. The majority of drivers don’t want them. A What Car Poll result said 44% of respondents don’t want them, 22% said they do. This is likely to be significantly down to the cost of purchasing and fuelling (either at home or on the move). Labour claims they will help second hand buyers install charge points – but there are no details. Even if they do this, the grid cannot cope with supplying power for a significant shift to EVs.  

“The forecourt sector is already seeing significant investment in alternative revenue streams such as food service and valeting. It is well placed for the energy transition. So, until the detail of Labours policies are published or laws imposed, it is difficult to comment further.” 

Stephen Owens, Managing Director – Pubs & Restaurants at Christie & Co, comments, “Labour’s pledges to replace the business rates system with a new, fairer system and reform the Apprenticeship Levy demonstrates that they have listened to the hospitality sector’s concerns and recognise the vital importance that pubs and restaurants, along with the wider hospitality sector, play in UK economy. 

“They now need to follow through with their promises, to ensure the sector remains an attractive industry where people want to work and invest.  

“It is hoped that with such a resounding majority, the new Labour government will be able to stick to these manifesto pledges quickly and decisively, and we look forward to hearing further details on their progress in the coming months.” 

For further discussion about how the election result will impact your business, contact us: enquiries@christie.com