Russell Lynch: Hammond won’t get far by alienating the wealth creators

The last thing this Government needs is to make more enemies in the business world, but the word on the grapevine is that Chancellor Philip Hammond is on course to do exactly that in his second Budget of the year.

Chatter from Westminster suggests Hammond is reviewing entrepreneurs’ relief — a tax break for people selling all or part of their business — with a view to cutting it back or even scrapping it completely.

The tax break is open to those who own more than 5% of a private company, and allows them to pay just a 10% tax rate on capital gains from the sale, up to a lifetime limit of £10 million.

The relief, first introduced in 2008, was reformed a couple of years ago to prevent people who weren’t genuine entrepreneurs gaming the relief by clubbing together in joint ventures to meet the 5% rule.

But it’s still quite expensive: HMRC estimates that the relief cost it £2 billion in lost capital gains tax in the past financial year.

The Treasury, unsurprisingly, refuses to comment on Budget speculation. But it’s no secret that the Chancellor is looking down the back of the sofa for any cash he can find as an increasingly restive cabinet calls for an end to public-sector pay restraint. The deal with the DUP to prop up the Government also means he’s committed to the expensive triple lock on pensions.

But in this post-Brexit world, entrepreneurs — the risk-takers and job creators — don’t need any more excuse not to take the plunge. Raiding their pockets would be the wrong move for the so-called party of business.

Strikers shame Bank

Day two of union Unite’s strike at the Bank of England and still no sign of talks between the two over the 1% pay rise on offer that’s triggered Threadneedle Street’s first strike in 50 years.

A walkout by the 80 workers in the Bank’s “parlours” looking after its top staff might sounds almost quaint compared with the industrial carnage on Southern Rail last summer.

Not if you’re one of the dozens of those staff on less than £20,000 at the institution supposed to be keeping a lid on inflation — led, lest we forget, by the best paid central banker in the world by a comfortable margin.