Meanwhile, Labour is attracting rising donations led by a £3m gift from Lord David Sainsbury, the former chairman of the supermarket chain, and more than £500,000 from Gary Lubner, the former boss of Autoglass.
To some extent, that is easy to understand. Business leaders have quite rightly given up on a chaotic and ineffective Conservative Party that has lost the ability to govern effectively. It has hammered them with tax rises, public services have gone into rapid decline, and it is hopelessly split between its rival factions.
Labour, meanwhile, is far more moderate than it was in 2019, and, while not exactly exciting, it does at least promise a few years of stability.
But the overriding factor for some in the City will be that, given that they are 20 points ahead in the opinion polls, you may as well back them now and at least hope to call in a few favours when they are in government a year from now. This case is easily made.
Even so, the City will regret backing Labour. Here’s why. First, the party has no real economic agenda. It has watered down its version of Bidenomics so much that it is completely meaningless. It makes vague pledges to speed up housebuilding while apparently leaving in place restrictions that prevent it, and may even sign up to growth-destroying regulations from Brussels.
Robert Johnson is a UK-based business writer specializing in finance and entrepreneurship. With an eye for market trends and a keen interest in the corporate world, he offers readers valuable insights into business developments.
