Your commercial news round-up: King Charles, wages, Taylor Swift, Amazon

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King Charles has unveiled legislative plans for the new Labour government, while UK wage growth has slowed. Meanwhile, inflation rates remain stable as hotel prices surge, partly attributed to the so-called ‘Taylor Swift effect’, and Amazon workers at the Coventry warehouse narrowly reject union recognition. Read this week’s commercial news round-up to find out more.

• King Charles outlined the new Labour government’s legislative plans in his speech to Parliament. Some of the bills mentioned in his speech include:
   
  • the Budget Responsibility Bill to ensure fiscal measures are independently assessed by the Office for Budget Responsibility;
  • the National Wealth Fund Bill, which will set up a new fund to invest £7.3 billion across five years in infrastructure and green industry; and
  • the Great British Energy Bill, which will create a publicly-owned clean energy production company.

Other significant measures outlined were the Renters’ Rights Bill (RRB), which will put an end to so-called ‘no-fault evictions’ and the Employment Rights Bill (ERB), which will ban zero-hours contracts, as well as other workers’ rights.  While the speech emphasises long-term strategic goals, immediate actions like the RRB and the ERB aim to address urgent issues. Following the King’s speech, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said there’s no “quick fix” and said the new government’s plan is to put the country on the “path of national renewal”.  

• Wages in the UK increased at their slowest rate in nearly two years, growing by 5.7% annually over the three months leading up to May. Despite this slowdown, pay is still outpacing rising prices. This means that, while wages are increasing more slowly, they’re keeping up with inflation. The number of job vacancies decreased by 30,000 to 889,000 between April and June, with the retail and hospitality sectors experiencing the most significant decline. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate remained at 4.4% in the three months to May. The chief economist at KPMG UK, Yael Selfin, noted “some signs of a cooling in the labour market” but said “the Bank of England (BoE) may be unwilling to risk an August cut in rates” in its next meeting until the market has “cooled sufficiently”.
   
• UK inflation remains at its 2% target for a second month in a row in June. It’s been reported that, as above, hopes of an August cut in interest rate have been dashed with some analysts putting the blame on the so-called ‘Taylor Swift effect’. The rise in hotel prices is said to be partly due to the immense demand during Swift’s Era’s Tour shows at Wembley Stadium in June – with more shows on the way in August. Economists at Capital Economics have suggested that Swift “may have stalled services disinflation”.  
   
• In a historic vote, Amazon workers at the Coventry warehouse narrowly rejected union recognition. The General, Municipal, Boilermakers (GMB) union faced a close vote with 49.5% of workers in favour of union recognition and 50.5% against it. Had the GMB won, it would’ve marked the first time Amazon recognised a union in the UK. Union recognition would’ve forced Amazon to engage in negotiations with workers regarding pay and working conditions. The GMB has accused Amazon of “union-busting”, citing “anti-union messages from company bosses” and “multiple anti-union seminars” within the warehouse. Despite this setback, the union says it’ll “carry on the fight” for low-paid workers. The general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, Paul Nowak, praised the GMB for taking on one of the “world’s largest corporate giants”. He added: "With Labour set to usher in a new era of stronger workers’ rights, companies like Amazon are on the wrong side of history.”  

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