The chief executive of JCB, Graeme Macdonald, has urged Chancellor Rachel Reeves to avoid implementing measures in the upcoming Autumn Budget that could discourage inward investment. Macdonald, who heads the Staffordshire-based manufacturing giant under chairman Lord Anthony Bamford, expressed scepticism about the forthcoming Budget, anticipating further tax increases.
Macdonald emphasised the importance of not imposing policies that could harm British businesses or deter private companies. Speaking to City AM, he said the company was “watching very closely on anything that the Chancellor may or may not do in this Budget that may impact the business.”
Macdonald’s comments came as JCB confirmed a £100 million investment in its Staffordshire headquarters, part of an automation and modernisation programme safeguarding 8,000 UK jobs. The announcement, coinciding with the company’s 80th anniversary, underlined the manufacturer’s intent to maintain domestic production despite global cost pressures.
He added: “We still want to be manufacturing here in Staffordshire and the UK irrespective of what is thrown at us by this government. I’m not optimistic to be honest. I think they’re definitely going have more tax rises, whether it’s direct impact on businesses or individual, I’m not quite sure.”
Macdonald is the latest in a chorus of business voices warning Chancellor Rachel Reeves against policies that could undermine investment and competitiveness.
Across manufacturing, Chris Barlow, head of manufacturing and engineering at MHA, said the Budget offered a moment of real opportunity for the government to show support for British industry. “The sector is ready to innovate and grow, but it needs a clear, tangible plan that addresses the challenges of taxation, investment, skills, energy, and trade,” he said.
In retail, Tesco chief executive Ken Murphy recently warned that previous Budgets had already imposed significant cost burdens. “In the last Budget, the industry incurred substantial additional operating costs and we’re doing our best to deal with that, but enough’s enough.” Murphy’s remarks echoed those of other high-street leaders calling for clarity on business-rates reform and energy support.
The wider corporate sector shares similar concerns. BT Group CEO Allison Kirkby recently noted that the UK’s cost base remains uncompetitive compared with Europe. “We pay in business rates, energy levies and other costs associated with regulation and compliance ten times the amount our peers pay in countries like Germany and the Netherlands,” she said. “So we’re already at peak government-inflicted costs.”
Beyond the boardroom, entrepreneur and former England cricketer Michael Vaughan urged the Chancellor to back opportunity for new founders. “Within any business, if you’re getting hit all the time with National Insurance and many other taxes that are coming to fruition, inflation is driving the price. So those people that are starting out to create a business will go ‘I don’t think I can make this work’,” he said in comments reported by City AM. “If she can help in any way to create that, that’d be great for the people that are trying to be entrepreneurs and idea creators.”
The Autumn Budget 2025 is expected to outline fiscal plans aimed at restoring growth after a year of subdued investment and stubborn inflation. Business groups are urging Reeves to balance fiscal restraint with pro-enterprise incentives — and, as JCB’s Macdonald put it, to “avoid doing anything daft.”
