The Autumn Budget 2024 announced several measures to help put more money into the pockets of working people.

These include an extended and widened Help to Save scheme, which offers lower earners a savings account with a maximum of £50 a month for four years, and a 50% government boost at the end of year 2 and year 4.

This helps workers kickstart a lifelong savings habit and offers up to £1,200 over the four years.

The National Living Wage will increase from £11.44 to £12.21 an hour for employees aged 21 and over, a 6.7% increase from 2024. For 18 to 20-year-olds, it will increase by £1.40 an hour to £10.00 an hour.

A new Fair Repayment Rate will cap deductions made through Universal Credit at 15% of the standard allowance, allowing approximately 1.2 million households to keep more of their Universal Credit payment each month.

The budget also includes further support for pensioners, those in crisis, and those struggling most with the cost of essentials. Chancellor Rachel Reeves unveiled £40bn worth of tax rises, hiked government borrowing, and promised to pump more money into the National Health Service and schools in Labour’s first government budget for over a decade. However, there is a clampdown on welfare and fresh savings targets for many Whitehall departments.

Domicile status will be removed from the tax system next year, chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced in the Autumn Budget. In her speech, Reeves labelled domicile status as an “outdated concept”.

Instead, the chancellor said she will introduce a ‘simpler’ residence-based scheme with considerations for workers coming to the UK temporarily.

According to the Office for Budget Responsibility, the measures will raise £12.7bn over the next five years.

The Tories claim Labour has broken their election promises and are sounding the alarm about fresh borrowing and a projected record tax take. Britain’s fiscal watchdog said the country is in line for its highest tax take on record and that growth will remain pretty flat. Long-term government borrowing costs rose in the wake of the statement as markets cast a muted verdict.

The whole of Rachel Reeves maiden budget can be read here