Given the recent general election, it is no surprise that vacancies dropped in June. With Businesses waiting on the outcome of the election, whilst Labour winning was a given, the coming weeks will now see a blitz of policy announcements, which will give greater clarity when it comes to investment.
The UK’s political landscape is particularly noteworthy with Europe facing a series of summer elections. If it gains power, the Labour Party has explicitly stated its intention to improve trade relations with the EU. Although specific plans have not been detailed, any shift in this direction could alleviate the sectoral dampening caused by Brexit.
On the first of January, the Labour Party announced its new deal for employees, contingent on their expected victory in the next election. Currently projected at an 88% likelihood of winning, businesses will need to review and update employee contracts to comply with the new regulations. Unsurprisingly, law firms are rapidly recruiting to bolster their employment teams faster than other practice areas.
With the UK still experiencing lower levels of labour market economic activity than before the pandemic, the North East faces the challenge of a growing divergence in growth compared to the southern regions of the country.
With the impact of climate change now becoming an ever-present reality, it is now being recommended that internal auditors globally make assessing the risk part of their purview, and within the UK specifically. Nonetheless, activity has been muted so far in 2024, with vacancies slowing down by 19.7% compared to last year.
