Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of business confidence levels on levels of (a) investment and (b) job creation in the economy.

The Government monitors a wide range of indicators to assess the UK’s economic performance, including measures of business confidence. Many of these confidence measures are volatile and can move materially from month to month. Official economic forecasts and assessments of policy impacts are set out in the Office for Budget Responsibility’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook documents, the most recent of which was published in March 2025.

Kickstarting economic growth is the Government’s primary mission and businesses are central to this. The Government is committed to going further and faster to drive growth and raise living standards, working in close partnership with business design and delivery policy. For example, at the recent Spending Review, the government increased funding for employment support to over £3.5 billion by 2028-29, tackling inactivity and ensuring more people are in better jobs by helping people to access the skills they need to progress.