M&S boss says £2B packaging tax is 'crushing' UK retail

For UK retailers, the cost of doing business has become a strategic threat. M&S chief Stuart Machin's intervention frames the £2bn packaging tax, employer National Insurance increases and 'patently ridiculous' recycling rules as taxes on every shelf and shop floor — costs that ultimately show up in the prices consumers pay. With Saturday jobs already exposed to worker-rights reforms, the 28 October Budget is a make-or-break moment for high-street operating models.

On 9 October 2026, Marks & Spencer chief executive Stuart Machin published a rare and blunt political intervention in the Daily Mail, describing the Labour government's economic record as "disasters" and "a crushing disappointment for customers, colleagues and businesses." With less than three weeks before Andy Burnham's first Budget as Prime Minister, scheduled for 28 October 2026, Machin called on the new Chancellor John Healey to reverse "the mistakes of the last two Budgets" and "get Britain growing by taking the handcuffs off business and putting money back in people's pockets." The scale of the attack from one of Britain's most prominent high-street bosses suggests corporate frustration with fiscal policy has reached a critical threshold.

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He also warned that Angela Rayner's new workers' rights reforms threaten "Saturday jobs," a direct concern for the retail and hospitality labour market.

Machin's criticism is grounded in specific policy measures. He highlighted the "disastrous" National Insurance employer hike, the £2bn packaging tax, recycling rules he called "patently ridiculous," and a broken business rates system. According to the source, these have pushed up the cost of doing business and, in turn, fed into higher prices for consumers. He also warned that Angela Rayner's new workers' rights reforms threaten "Saturday jobs," a direct concern for the retail and hospitality labour market. The article frames these measures as cumulative taxes on employment, property and packaging that disproportionately affect labour-intensive, high-street operators.

The political context sharpens the message. Former Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who was sacked by Burnham, announced £75bn of tax rises in just two years at the Treasury. Machin's demand to reverse those mistakes places immediate pressure on John Healey ahead of the 28 October Budget. City grandee Sir Martin Sorrell backed the call, saying "we need real growth policies as opposed to statements about the importance of growth," and noted that Burnham's "plenty of TikTok videos" promising tough decisions would be tested on 28 October. Other business leaders told the Mail that Britain needed "a job-creation Budget" following Reeves' "smash-and-grab raid" on enterprise. This collective executive frustration elevates the Budget from a routine fiscal event to a credibility test for Burnham's new government.

For the retail sector, the operational implications are immediate. Employer National Insurance contributions, packaging taxes and unreformed business rates are fixed costs that cannot be easily offset, especially when consumer demand is price-sensitive. Machin's warning that business costs are being passed through as higher prices directly links fiscal policy to shop-floor inflation. The mention of Saturday jobs also highlights the labour-market trade-off: stronger worker rights may improve security for some employees but could reduce flexible entry-level roles that retailers rely on for weekend peaks. If the new Budget does not offer relief, retailers may face difficult choices between absorbing margin compression, cutting hours or raising prices further.