The Government’s Spring 2024 budget has changed the shape of taxation in the UK for high net-worth individuals who are not UK-domiciled. The implications of this change are yet to be seen properly; therefore, when looking at the recruitment patterns, we are forecasting an increase in tax vacancies this year compared to last year’s 32% in London, and 46% regionally.
After the technical recession in 2023, which led to vacancies dropping in the region compared to 2022, we have seen a bounce back in Q1 so far, culminating in an uplift of 7.6% which compares favorably to the national figures (+5.4%.) As a result, the region now accounts for 6.7% of the national total in terms of vacancies, up from 5.8% in 2022.
Insurance companies face new risks due to economic volatility, higher interest rates, geopolitical uncertainty, and climate change. This has led to a rise in demand for risk professionals, with vacancies up by 11.4% in 2024 compared to last year. March 2024 had the highest number of risk vacancies in over a year, indicating a continuing trend.
Post-pandemic economy shifting from London: HQ function vacancies down to 41.2% from 47.8% in 2019.
Job vacancies in 2023 fall by 23.7% compared to 2022, according to the latest UK Labour Market Trends report by leading professional body APSCo and labour market data analysts Vacancysoft.
When examining recruitment activity in the capital, the signs are positive. Indeed, there has been a 24.6% increase in recruitment within Commerce & Industry in 2024 compared to the monthly average of 2023, with increases in retail, media, and technology. In contrast, regional activity has yet to experience such an upturn, with aggregate vacancies down by 5.4% so far this year and Commerce & Industry experiencing a 5.7% drop specifically.
