LONDON (Reuters) -Britons became more gloomy this month and the prospect of tax increases in finance minister Rachel Reeves’ budget in November threatens to damage confidence levels further, a survey showed on Friday.

Market research firm GfK said its consumer confidence index sank to -19 in September from -17 in August which had been its highest since December, and slightly below the -18 forecast in a Reuters poll.

Neil Bellamy, consumer insights director at GfK, said all five measures of confidence dipped this month and a separate gauge of savings intention fell sharply.

An index measuring sentiment about the economic outlook now stands at -32, way down from -11 in June last year, shortly before Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party won a parliamentary election.

“With tax rises

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