Barclays boss warns Chancellor hike in bank tax will hit growth

BARCLAYS has joined the ranks of major banks issuing a stark warning to Rachel Reeves against increasing bank taxes as the Chancellor strives to preserve her precarious fiscal leeway.

- SAMUEL NORMAN

The FTSE 100 heavyweight’s chief, CS Venkatakrishnan, commonly known as Venkat, expressed that the government's growth ambitions would be at odds with imposing higher taxes on banks - or any other vital sectors of the economy.

“I think growth is the important objective of the UK economy, and we want good-quality growth, which is fuelled by the important sectors of the economy - banks are one of them,” he stated.

Venkat highlighted pharmaceuticals and technology as other key industries that act as channels for economic success. He contended that financial institutions are already “among the biggest taxpayers in this country”.