Few surprises and lacking big decisions - Shropshire business leaders react to Budget 2026

John Healey delivered his first Budget as Chancellor just over three months after taking on the job.

There were measures announced to cut business rates, increase the minimum wage, new ISA products and rebates to help with domestic energy bills.

Here, Shropshire business leaders have been reacting to the 2026 statement.

The head of Shropshire Chamber of Commerce said the Budget lacked the big decisions required to provide real support to under-pressure businesses.

Chief executive Ruth Ross said: "The Chancellor described it as a Budget to give us more breathing space but I'm not sure businesses will be feeling any of that.

"This was a Budget that tried to send all the right signals but lacked the sort of big calls that would really make a difference.

"There really wasn't anything in there providing direct support to businesses at all."

She said the decision to increase small business rate relief to £18,000 would be welcomed by many retailers in Shropshire's market towns, but added: "Overall, there was nothing to release the shackles on investment or boost confidence.

"There is no doubt that many firms will have been hoping for a greater impact.

"There were several positive steps outlined, including Founders Relief and significant reductions or the complete removal of business rates, but inflation and taxation remain the biggest concerns in our quarterly economic survey along with the minimum wage. None of that has been alleviated by this speech."

The chief executive of a Telford manufacturer said the Budget did not do enough to back the sector in the UK.

Graham Corfield, who runs boarding ramp manufacturer Aviramp, said the Chancellor should have gone further, with manufacturers still under pressure from rising costs and skills shortages.

He said: "While there are some welcome measures aimed at supporting investment and economic stability, particularly around defence, I don't believe this Budget goes far enough to unlock the full potential of British manufacturing.

"We want to invest, recruit and export but we need a policy environment that gives us the confidence to do all that. Manufacturing is one of the UK's greatest strengths.

"There must be greater investment in apprenticeships and more flexibility in skills funding because the current system is simply not delivering enough people with the qualifications employers need."

The director of a Shrewsbury-based architecture practice said the Budget was a mixed blessing for the sector.

Carl Huntley, who runs Base Architects, welcomed extra investment in social and affordable housing but said Mr Healey had not done enough to tackle skills shortages and planning delays.

"The new Your First Home scheme should stimulate activity at the lower end of the housing ladder but the mansion tax will have the opposite effect at the other end," he said.

Co-director Bryn Jones added: "Viability remains one of the biggest concerns. Rising construction costs, higher borrowing rates, increased regulatory requirements and ongoing pressure on supply chains have combined to make many schemes increasingly difficult to deliver.

"While any measures designed to stimulate investment are welcome, there was little in the announcement that directly addresses the financial pressures facing developers and investors on the ground."

Paul Inions is the managing director of Telford-based construction and civil engineering firm McPhillips.

He said the Budget marked a "real shift" in how the West Midlands was funded including through the new Good Growth Funds.

"Keeping 100 per cent of business rates locally and, from 2028, a share of income tax gives the region long-term funding it controls and can plan around too," he said.

"For those of us building the region's infrastructure, that means the public sector can plan ahead and the private sector and its supply chain have the certainty to work together and deliver on that plan.

"But we've heard the rhetoric before and what the region needs now is delivery. We have the resources, the skills and the desire to deliver. We now need the planning system unlocked and funding to come through so we can get on with it."

Financial planner Alasdair Coutts-Britton said the Budget contained few surprises which was not always a bad thing.

The founder of Oswestry-based Una Vita Financial Planning said: "I don't think this was ever going to be anything more than a steady-as-you-go Budget because Mr Healey simply did not have many options available to him.

"The increase in the threshold for business rates is good news for pubs, clubs and restaurants and the continuation of the fuel duty freeze was entirely predictable with diesel at £2 a litre.

"The decision not to go ahead with the cut to the amount people can put into a cash ISA and keep it at £20,000 was less predictable but certainly welcome as was the £100 energy support for people living in homes in council tax bands A to D.

"A relatively quiet Budget is not necessarily a bad thing. If you think back to the last two Budgets, all the speculation ahead of them led to people making personal finance decisions they later regretted."

A Telford-based accountant has welcomed support for small businesses but said the Chancellor could have done much more.

Helen Cooper, owner of Turas Accountants, says the decision to increase the business rates thresholds would help thousands but they would still be facing a tough 12 months because of rising fuel costs and tough economic conditions.

"There were undoubtedly some positive announcements in the speech such as the help for first-time buyers and the cuts to business rates but I would have liked to have seen more to support small businesses," she said.

"It is these businesses which employ the majority of people in this country and which drive the nation's economic growth and it is all too easy to take them for granted."

Mrs Cooper also warned businesses that major technical announcements could also be hidden in the detail of today's speech.

Solicitor Helen Watson has warned that a 3.9 per cent increase in the minimum wage risks adding further pressure on businesses already facing a raft of new employment measures.

The senior partner with Shrewsbury-based Aaron & Partners says the move needs to be viewed alongside the wider changes already coming through, particularly for smaller firms without dedicated HR teams.

"The rise will be welcomed by millions of workers but employers will now need to look carefully at what the increase means alongside everything else that's coming their way," she said.

"It comes as tougher obligations around workplace harassment take effect this week, with the qualifying period for unfair dismissal then dropping to six months from January.

"Taken individually, these changes are reasonable and manageable but it's the cumulative impact that businesses, particularly smaller employers with lower budgets and no dedicated HR teams, will be worried about.

"For some smaller firms, that could mean a real brake on hiring. If recruitment or expansion starts to slow as a result, that would sit uneasily with the Government's ambition to get businesses growing and creating jobs."

Shropshire-based communications specialist Jon Simcock said the Budget contained few surprises but could pave the way for an early general election.

He thinks the Prime Minister might be tempted to go to the polls if the spike in his popularity continues to hold.

"There was little to truly scare the horses in this Budget and some positive news such as the £100 help with energy bills and the extension of the cut to VAT on electricity bills," he said.

"Business also benefitted with the new tax relief for the founders of successful firms and the raising of the business rates threshold for many small businesses.

"In general, I get the feeling this Budget was designed neither to please nor offend but simply to mark time. In fact, it could well turn out to be the last Budget before a General Election."