Anyone with proper business experience knows the impact that is coming in April from Labour's job tax - sadly, that does not therefore include the Chancellor or the Business Secretary. There is real fear across the business community, a crisis is coming and almost all politicians have stopped talking about it. A lot of focus on the hike in NI, but not enough on the threshold change which is just as damaging. Going from a £9,100 threshold to £5,000 is brutal - it will drag countless lower paid employees into the tax for businesses. Those devising and implementing these rules, politicians and civil servants, do NOT understand how businesses operate. We all know about the experience, or lack of it, from Reeves and Reynolds. There are 306 'senior civil servants' in the Department for Business/Trade. How many have a directorship on Companies House? ONE. ONE out of 306 has current experience. Just one. These people do NOT understand what they are doing to business owners. They just don't know or care. Their cosy jobs and pensions are safe. These aren't city fat cats they're attacking. It's normal, ordinary, decent men and women who are trying to find their way and provide for their families. These changes WILL result in less investment, fewer pay rises, and a weaker economy. That impacts EVERYONE. Tax is ALREADY punishing. What's Labour's response? Hike it up even further. I listen to them in Parliament - Reeves, Reynolds and the other drones. It's worse up close. They don't know what they are talking about. Honestly, it's so bad. I challenge Reeves/Reynolds to run a small business for just one week, in this climate. Let's see how they get on making these decisions. They can't deceive the cold hard numbers. We should be hacking tax down - right across the board. Income, dividend, corporation. Business is all about incentives. The five golden rules - what's in it for me? Anyone who thinks otherwise is deluded. What does Government need to do for business? Slash tax, cut burdensome regulation and get the hell out of our way.

I've been involved in the creation of more businesses than I can remember - investing in, and developing companies alongside, young British entrepreneurs is a real passion of mine. Starting a business from scratch, building it up, making it a success? It is bloody hard work, and there is real risk involved. Anyone who has given it a go, successful or not, has my respect. Not many in the Labour Party can say they've done that... There needs to be a total reset of the relationship between Government/HMRC and private businesses. Just look at these average call waiting time figures, it sums up how the state treats the people actually paying the bills... HMRC? 24 minutes, 18 seconds. Universal Credit helpline? 3 minutes, 24 seconds. It's a joke. Trying to get anything out of HMRC is pathetically difficult, as it is with ANY Governmental organisation. Any of them! Don't get me started on local councils... They're working from home, off for the week, it's someone else's problem. Nobody takes any responsibility, and guess what? NOTHING gets done. All work is done in silos. There is no joined-up thinking, with ZERO consequences for failing to deliver. I'd link senior public sector leadership pay to performance. See how that gets them jumping up and down. Before I was elected, I knew it was bad. Having seen it from the position of an MP? Bloody hell. It's even worse than I thought, and that is saying something. The services we're paying an increasing amount of tax for aren't serving the people actually funding the whole charade. If it were up to me - I'd slash corporation tax, cut dividend rates, double the VAT threshold, reduce income tax/national insurance contributions, increase personal allowances, abolish businesses rates for high street small businesses, and generally simplify the tax process. Incentivise people to make money and generate success. And guess what? They'll end up actually paying more tax. I will never understand how politicians can't grasp this basic idea. It is NOT POSSIBLE to tax our way to economic prosperity. Governments don't drive growth, individuals and businesses do. To anyone in business who is wading through this nonsense trying to make a success of themselves, you have my full admiration and respect. I know it's difficult at the moment, but keep plugging away. Your hard work is appreciated!

Incredible listening to Reeves and her minions yesterday on National Insurance hikes, and threshold cuts. I've been thinking about it. I honestly don't think she knows what she's doing - there is no other explanation. It's that, or she is deliberately trying to bankrupt thousands of British businesses, restrict pay rises for millions and push up costs for the entire population. Her tax on employment is going to suffocate the British economy. I asked her to shoulder that responsibility. She looked me in the eye, and repeated that same black hole nonsense we're all sick and tired of hearing. Reeves DOES NOT KNOW what she's doing. Speak to almost anyone in charge of running a business that actually employs people - Labour's employment tax will prevent pay rises, withhold investment and drive up prices. It's going to kill countless firms. Trying to generate economic growth and prosperity through tax rises is so brainlessly stupid it hurts. People didn't vote Labour for this madness, in fact they specifically said they wouldn't raise taxes. They were elected on a lie.

I've spent the last few days talking to contacts across the business world - proper people, creating wealth and generating opportunities. I can honestly say that, to a man, Reeves's budget has gone down like a bucket of cold sick. One medium sized business, £350k EXTRA a year to pay in tax. Another, £150k. A smaller operation, £30k. Genuine question - does Reeves understand what she's done? She is going to put a bullet through thousands and thousands of businesses. It's not like she slapped this tax on during a prosperous time. It is bloody hard work running a company now, and she's made things infinitely more difficult. Prices will go up, pay rises will go down. If she thinks that this tax will not impact 'working people', then she's delusional. How will companies deal with it? They won't invest, they won't hire, they won't grow. And what happens? Less and less tax is paid, and this whole sorry show will be a huge drain on the economy. The ONLY way to properly deliver growth is through the individual. Cut their tax, and MOTIVATE people. I write this with just pure frustration - I cannot believe that they don't understand the consequences of their actions. An incompetent Budget, from an incompetent Chancellor, as part of an incompetent Government. Get rid of the lot.