Autumn Budget 2026 Summary

The Chancellor, John Healey, has announced his first budget in the House of Commons.

Here’s a summary of the main points he delivered to Parliament.

• About 20 million households in council tax bands A to D will get a £100 energy payment this winter, paid directly into bank accounts.
• Standing charges on household gas bills will be scrapped, with similar reforms for electricity to follow. The Treasury says this could save 60% of account-holding households £45 a year, but people who use more gas will pay more because the cost moves into the unit price.          
• The 5p fuel duty cut is extended through winter and spring to July, citing high fuel prices from the war in the Middle East. 
• The National Living Wage rises 3.9% to £13.20 an hour.
• Pensioners whose income is no more than the full new state pension won’t pay income tax on it for the rest of this parliament.
• £430 million more will keep an offer of a route off the streets open for rough sleepers every winter for the rest of the parliament.

• Tax on income from property and savings goes up by a further two percentage points from April 2027. Tax on dividends and on employment income is unchanged. Healey says 88% of people will pay no more tax on their savings income.
• The bank surcharge rises by 3% from January for 15 months, to help fund energy bill support. Bank shares rallied because many had feared a bigger hit.
• Machine games duty on higher-stakes gambling machines rises from 20% to 25%.
• Healey said he had kept Labour’s manifesto promise not to raise tax on working people.

• Rachel Reeves’s planned £12,000 cap on cash ISAs for under-65s is scrapped, so the full £20,000 allowance stays. A new ‘starter ISA’ for first-time investors will be developed with the industry.
• The Lifetime ISA penalty will be reformed, and the First Time Buyer ISA will replace the Lifetime ISA. The Your First Home equity loan scheme starts next spring, backed by £4.7 billion of government lending. 

• The small business rate relief threshold for retail, hospitality and leisure rises from £12,000 to £18,000. Healey says this means about half of shops, restaurants and gyms will pay no business rates. 
• The trading allowance triples from £1,000 to £3,000, and a new young entrepreneurs allowance will cover a year of living costs for young founders. 
• An extra £20.4 billion goes to the National Wealth Fund and British Business Bank.
• Mayors will get a share of business rates from 2027, a share of income tax from 2028, and the power to bring in a tourist tax.

• Healey committed to fully funding the Defence Investment Plan, the plan he resigned over as defence secretary. Details of reaching NATO’s 3.5% target by 2035, with 3% by 2030, will come at next year’s spending review. 
• A welfare white paper responding to the Milburn and Timms reports is due before the end of the year, with legislation next year.
• He said adjusting the triple lock from 2030 would save £15 billion a year by the late 2030s.

• Fiscal headroom falls to £15 billion, from £23.6 billion in March, mainly because of the cost of responding to the Iran war.
• The OBR now expects growth of 1.2% this year and 1% in 2027.
• The UK will spend £14 billion more on debt interest this year.
• The 10-year gilt yield ended slightly lower on the day

If you are unsure of how any of points detailed here might affect you or your business, contact us on 01384 376 964.

Folkes Worton LLP Chartered Accountants
Accounting for the Future