Business review of 2022: Chaos at heart of Government hit business hard

In fact, Britain was about to witness arguably the most spectacular political downfall of all time. For many Westminster observers, October was a “popcorn moment”; when an internal feud in the Conservative party made for unmissable viewing. For many businesses and consumers, the last quarter has been the equivalent of being dragged through a hedge backwards. The chaos at the heart of Government continues to have real world consequences, as financial policies were redrawn with breathtaking pace.

In early October, events moved quickly. Ms Truss made a series of lacklustre appearances on BBC local radio which only stoked fears that her Government’s rash mini-budget had failed to anticipate the negative marker reaction.

The plan to scrap the top rate of tax was promptly abandoned after Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng said it had become a “terrible distraction”.

Ms Truss promised to make the “difficult but necessary” choices to get the economy moving, hitting out at an ill-defined “anti-growth coalition” which she claimed was seeking to stop her. On October 14, Mr Kwarteng was hauled back from a meeting of the International Monetary Fund in Washington to be sacked as chancellor. Ms Truss performed another screeching U-turn, ditching a pledge to scrap a planned rise in corporation tax from 19 per cent to 25 per cent. The new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt dumped further key parts of Mr Kwarteng’s mini-budget and warned that decisions of “eye-watering difficulty” would be needed to restore market confidence. His statement marked the end of Trussonomics.

At Prime Minister’s Questions, Ms Truss told MPs: “I am a fighter, not a quitter.” But the following day, she did just that, paving the way for Rishi Sunak to stage what must surely rank as one of the greatest political comebacks in history. A century from now, students of politics will surely be mulling over the minutiae of Ms Truss’s 44 days in power.

The new Government then got to work. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt blamed Vladimir Putin for a “recession made in Russia” but promised a “recovery made in Britain” as he delivered a grim autumn statement which signalled tax rises, energy bill increases and declining living standards. But pensioners and people on benefits were protected, with inflation-linked increases promised from April.

No company or sector could escape the economic headwinds. In early December, there was a warning that manufacturers in Yorkshire were looking at a tough year ahead with the sector likely to contract in the face of a deteriorating economic outlook at home and abroad.

Dawn Huntrod, regional director for industry group Make UK in Yorkshire & Humber said: “There is simply no sugar-coating the outlook for next year and possibly beyond. Even for a sector as resilient as manufacturing these are remarkably challenging times which are testing even the best and most successful of companies to the limit.

“As a result, while the Chancellor has already brought in some welcome measures to help ease the cost pressure on companies in the short term, it may not be too long before we see him having to bring more firepower to ease cost pressures.

“However, the bigger issue is that the UK risks sleepwalking into an acceptance that little or no growth is the norm. Government needs to work with industry as a matter of urgency to deliver a long-term industrial strategy that has growth at national and regional levels at its heart.”

But in Yorkshire, there were still shafts of light amid the gloom. With Leeds 2023, a year celebrating culture in the city, around the corner and the news that Bradford has been crowned UK City of Culture for 2025, there are plenty of creative companies beating a path to the region.

The economic impact of Channel 4’s move to Yorkshire should not be underestimated. It has been a major shot in arm for the creative sector here in the region. The broadcaster has brought hundreds of jobs to the region but more importantly a burgeoning TV market has sprung up in Yorkshire since it officially launched its new headquarters in Leeds three years ago.

In York, Leeds, Hull, Wakefield and Sheffield cranes still appeared on the skylines as regeneration schemes breathed new life into districts which had been neglected for decades.

Businesses across the region are still facing soaring energy bills, supply chain disruption and are waging a constant battle to find staff, particularly in the hospitality sector. However, Yorkshire firms have always taken adversity in their stride and continued to invest during times of upheaval. We can only hope that a new year provides much needed peace and economic stability, which have been in short supply during 2022.