Budget 2025: CBI tells Reeves 'change course' to avoid inflicting more damage on business

She is also set to encourage the Government to make “hard choices” and avoid “death by a thousand taxes”.

Ms Newton-Smith, chief executive officer of the group, will spread the message in her speech at the CBI’s annual conference today, which will also see speeches from Business Secretary Peter Kyle and Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch.

The event comes two days before Chancellor Rachel Reeves will reveal the Government’s latest tax and spending plans in her autumn Budget.

Today, the trade body boss will specifically call for action on business energy costs and the Employment Rights Bill.

Initial measures linked to the Bill, such as day one paternity leave and changes to statutory sick leave, are due to come into force in April next year.

Further measures, such as banning unfair zero hours contracts, are expected to be introduced in 2027.

However, the Bill has faced criticism from employers over increases in business costs and complexity.

Ms Newton-Smith said the legislation is “damaging” and called for a change in direction from the Government.

In the speech, she will also say: “Right now, we have a government who say they want growth. Well business wants growth too.

“And the truth is – only business can deliver it. But to do that, we need one thing from this government and we need it now – stability.”

The conference comes amid a backdrop of caution among businesses and consumers ahead of the Budget.

Former Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane said the “fiscal fandango” of the past months had caused “paralysis” among businesses and consumers.

“Next week, we need a decisive action that puts to bed and beyond reproach any notion of further tax rises,” he added.

However, the Liberal Democrats have calculated that around nine million people are expected to be pulled into higher tax bands by 2030, if Ms Reeves continues the Conservative policy of freezing tax bands.

This means that due to inflation more people will get pulled into high rates of income tax by something known as fiscal drag.

The Liberal Democrat research, based on the latest Office for Budget Responsibility figures and previous Commons Library analysis, shows that an extra 1.3 million will be dragged into a higher rate if the Chancellor goes ahead with extending the threshold freeze through tp 2029-30.

This is on top of the almost 7.7 million people already on track to be dragged into a higher tax band by the so-called “stealth taxes” introduced by the Conservatives in 2021.

Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson, Daisy Cooper, said: “A staggering nine million people are now set to be hit by the Conservative–Labour stealth tax stitch-up.

“Rachel Reeves once accused the Conservatives of ‘picking the pockets’ of working people by freezing tax thresholds — now Labour plans to do exactly the same.

“That’s rank hypocrisy. While the two big parties squabble, it’s ordinary Brits who are left footing the bill.”