Chancellor urged to take ‘hard choices’ rather than hit businesses with more tax

Rachel Reeves has been warned not to inflict “death by a thousand taxes” on British business in Wednesday’s Budget.

The head of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Rain Newton-Smith said the Government must “change course” and avoid heaping more costs on firms.

The Chancellor will hike taxes to fill a black hole in the public finances as she faces the prospect of a downgrade in the Budget watchdog’s economic growth forecast for every year of this Parliament.

At the CBI’s conference in Westminster, Ms Newton-Smith urged Ms Reeves to stand up to Labour’s backbenchers to take tough decisions on issues such as cutting welfare spending.

She said Ms Reeves had to prove she was committed to economic growth and make the hard choices to deliver it.

“Prove it – against opposition, ag