UK Politics

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseBrexit is on course to cut UK trade by 15 per cent, the government’s independent financial watchdog has warned. Vote Leave campaigners argued that British trade would receive a boost from exiting the European Union in the run up to 2016’s referendum.But in documents published alongside Rachel Reeves’ Budget the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said that “weak growth in imports and exports over the medium term partly reflect the continuing impact of Brexit, which we expect to reduce the overall trade intensity of the UK economy by 15 per cent in the long term.”The figures led to claims that Brexit was the “elephant in the chancellor’s study”. The prime minister has said that he wants to reset the UK’s relationship with the EU, fixing it for the benefit of “generations to come”. But Labour has specifically ruled out any return to the EU’s customs union or single market, despite calls to go further and faster with the plans, amid warnings over the cost of Brexit to the wider economy.Chancellor Rachel Reeves unveiled her first Budget on Wednesday More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseRachel Reeves has announced Labour’s first Budget in 14 years, making history as the first female chancellor to lead the fiscal event.The chancellor had made no secret of the difficult task she faced, with her announcement set against the backdrop of the £22bn ‘black hole’ in public finances she says was left behind by the previous Tory government.Beginning her statement with an attack on the previous Conservative administration for “hiding the reality” of the scale of this spending challenge. She went on to reveal that new taxation measures aim to raise £40bn – the highest since 1993.Rachel Reeves makes Budget speech, 30 October 2024 More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseRachel Reeves has been warned her decision to hike stamp duty for second home-buyers will punish renters as well as landlords.At Wednesday’s Budget the chancellor announced that second-home buyers will face an increase of 2 percentage points to the stamp duty land tax (SDLT) surcharge, taking the additional tax to 5 per cent.The surcharge is paid on top of standard stamp duty rates, which are charged on properties above the value of £250,000. First time buyers are exempt on properties up to the value of £425,000.The change, coming into force from Thursday, will make it more expensive for landlords to purchase further properties and is aimed at “supporting first-time and main home buyers”, Ms Reeves said. Rachel Reeves unveiled her first Budget in the Commons today More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseWatch live as chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) Richard Hughes holds a press conference after Labour’s Budget was announced on Wednesday, 30 October.Rachel Reeves, the UK’s first female chancellor, announced tax hikes that will raise an eye-watering £40bn.The chancellor said Labour had inherited a £22bn funding “black hole” from the Tories and would never again “allow a government to play fast and loose with public finances.”Ms Reeves promised to “invest, invest, invest” in order to “fix public services” after months of warning the public of the “tough choices” ahead.She confirmed increases to employers’ national insurance contributions, stamp duty on second homes and a scrapping of VAT exemption on private schools fees, and a new duty on vaping liquids.Ahead of the press conference, the OBR said Ms Reeves’ plan “delivers a large, sustained increase in spending, taxation, and borrowing.” More

Chancellor Reeves confirms fuel duty freeze will continue into 2025Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseRachel Reeves has announced increases in stamp duty rise and capital gains tax as part of tax hikes that will raise an eye-watering £40bn in her historic first Budget.Launching an attack on previous Tory governments, the chancellor said Labour had inherited a £22bn “black hole”, and would never again “allow a government to play fast and loose with public finances.After months spent warning the public of “tough choices” ahead, Ms Reeves promised to “invest, invest, invest” in order to “fix public services”.Increases to employers’ national insurance contributions, stamp duty on second homes and a scrapping of VAT exemption on private schools fees were all confirmed by the chancellor, as well as a new duty on vaping liquids.However, there were surprise announcements that the freeze on income tax thresholds, often described as a “stealth tax”, would not be extended past 2028, while Ms Reeves has also decided against a hike in fuel duty.Responding to the Budget, Rishi Sunak accused Ms Reeves of “fiddling the figures” and criticised the government for embarking on an “enormous borrowing spree”.Show latest update 1730300035Watch live: Office for Budget Responsibility responds to Rachel Reeves’ £40bn tax hikesAndy Gregory30 October 2024 14:531730299894Budget averts 36% fall in net public investment, IPPR analyst saysRachel Reeves’ Budget will keep investment in the public sector roughly stable over the course of this parliament, according to Carsten Jung, head of macroeconomics at the IPPR think-tank.The new plans contrast with a 36 per cent fall under the previous Tory government’s plans, Mr Jung said.Andy Gregory30 October 2024 14:511730299549What impact will Budget have on rail travel costs?Regulated train fares in England will increase by up to 4.6 per cent next year and the price of most railcards – excluding the discount mechanism for disabled passengers – will rise by £5, Rachel Reeves announced in her Budget.The increase in fares is one percentage point above July’s Retail Prices Index (RPI) measure of inflation, which until 2023 was used by Westminster governments to set the cap on annual rises in regulated fares.But a Budget document published by the Treasury stated that the 4.6 per cent rise will be “the lowest absolute increase in three years”, with fare changes to come into force in March.Andy Gregory30 October 2024 14:451730299292Pound strengthens slightly after Budget, but FTSE remains in the redThe pound has strengthened following Rachel Reeves’ Budget – although the FTSE 100 Index remained in the red.Sterling, which was down 0.4 per cent against both the US dollar and euro prior to the Budget – later stood 0.2 per cent higher at $1.303 dollars and 0.1 per cent lower at €1.201.However, London’s FTSE 100 Index fell 0.6 per cent.Andy Gregory30 October 2024 14:411730299172Budget sets Britain ‘on path towards national renewal’, says TUCThe Trades Union Congress has hailed Rachel Reeves’ first Budget as a “vital first step towards repairing and rebuilding Britain”, but warned that “there is still a lot more work to do to clean up 14 years of Tory mess and economic decline.TUC chief Paul Nowak said: “The chancellor was dealt a terrible hand by the last Conservative government – a toxic legacy of economic chaos, falling living standards and broken public services. But with today’s budget the Chancellor has acted decisively to deliver an economy that works for working people.“The government’s investment plans are a vital first step towards repairing and rebuilding Britain – securing the stronger growth, higher wages and decent public services that the country desperately needs.“Tax rises will ensure much-needed funds for our NHS, schools and the rest of our crumbling public services, with those who have the broadest shoulders paying a fairer share. The chancellor was right to prioritise hospitals and classrooms over private jets.“There is still a lot more work to do to clean up 14 years of Tory mess and economic decline – including better supporting and strengthening our social security system. But this budget sets us on an urgently needed path towards national renewal.”Andy Gregory30 October 2024 14:391730298913Watch: Rachel Reeves mocks Rishi Sunak with private jet announcementBudget: Rachel Reeves mocks Rishi Sunak with private jet announcementAndy Gregory30 October 2024 14:351730298764Sunak accuses Reeves of ‘tidal wave of anti-business regulations’Rishi Sunak has accused the chancellor of “delivering a tidal wave of anti-business regulations” and claimed the Labour Party is led by people “who have no experience of business”.The former prime minister told the Commons: “Today, the OBR has forecast growth is going to be lower under this government than it was forecast to be under the Conservatives, that’s the change they have brought.“This is what happens when the Labour Party is led by people who have no experience of business. Relentlessly talking down our economy, delivering a tidal wave of anti-business regulations, destroying our flexible labour market, and raising taxes to the highest level in our country’s history.“It’s a classic Labour agenda – higher taxes, higher borrowing, no plan for growth and working people paying the price.”Andy Gregory30 October 2024 14:321730298078Watch: Rachel Reeves pledges unprecedented NHS funding boost to transform healthcareRachel Reeves pledges unprecedented NHS funding boost to transform healthcareJoe Middleton30 October 2024 14:211730297604Sunak claims pensioners have been ‘squeezed’ in BudgetRishi Sunak has warned that Britain’s poorest pensioners have been “squeezed” in the Budget.He told the Commons: “Britain’s poorest pensioners squeezed, welfare spending out of control and a streak of tax rises they promised the working people of this country they would not do.The former prime minister said: “National insurance, up. Capital gains tax, up. Inheritance tax, up. Energy taxes, up. Business rates, up. First-time buyer stamp duty, up. Pensions tax, up. They have fiddled the figures.”Joe Middleton30 October 2024 14:131730297257How will the employer National Insurance rise affect you?Rachel Reeves has confirmed that employer national insurance contributions (NICs) will rise following an announcement at Labour’s first Budget.The measure has caused strong political debate, focused on whether it would break Labour’s manifesto pledge to not raise taxes on “working people.”Ministers and Treasury officials have indicated the government’s position is that the measure would not break their manifesto pledge. Meanwhile, Institute for Fiscal Studies director Paul Johnson has argued it would be a “straightforward breach.”Here are the facts about the debate and how the measure could affect you:Joe Middleton30 October 2024 14:07 More

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreCloseWatch as Rachel Reeves presented Labour’s first Budget in 14 years on Wednesday, 30 October.The chancellor promised: “More pounds in people’s pockets. An NHS that is there when you need it. An economy that is growing, creating wealth and opportunity for all. Because that is the only way to improve living standards.”Ms Reeves announced tax hikes that will raise an eye-watering £40bn.The chancellor said Labour had inherited a £22bn funding “black hole” from the Tories and would never again “allow a government to play fast and loose with public finances.”She pledged to “invest, invest, invest” in order to “fix public services” after months of warning the public of the “tough choices” ahead.Ms Reeves confirmed increases to employers’ national insurance contributions, stamp duty on second homes and a scrapping of VAT exemption on private schools fees, and a new duty on vaping liquids.The Treasury already announced that the minimum wage will increase to £12.21.It falls short of the £12.60 an hour sum recommended by the Living Wage Foundation, but Ms Reeves described the 6.7 per cent increase as a “significant step” towards creating a “genuine living wage for working people.”Labour vowed not to raise taxes on “working people” in the days before the Budget announcement.Their pre-election manifesto promised not to increase income tax, national insurance, or VAT as part of their commitment to keep taxes low for these “working people.” More