The 2026 Autumn Budget will take place on Wednesday 28 October, where chancellor John Healey will set out the government’s plans for taxation and expenditure for the next year and beyond.
The budget will be the first fiscal test of Andy Burnham’s Labour government as worries grow that the chancellor will need to increase taxes to fund public services.
In a statement released by The Treasury, Healey said: “The Budget will [move] money and power out of Westminster, and into every postcode around Britain. It will be built on fiscal discipline. It will meet our fiscal rules. It’ll give businesses and families some of the stability they need to plan for the future.”
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One of the key challenges Healey faces is balancing the government’s books. The government’s fiscal rules prevent it from borrowing money to pay for day-to-day spending, and require debt to be falling as a share of the economy by 2030.
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Despite criticism that the self-imposed fiscal rules restrain the chancellor too much, Burnham has confirmed his government will stick by them.
This was reiterated in Healey’s first major speech as chancellor on 7 September, adding that Britain needs to control its public spending and borrowing.
“There's nothing progressive about the government spending £1 in £10 on debt interest,” he said.
Healey also added that “fiscal discipline” is his first priority as chancellor, saying: “It underwrites every promise this government makes and the prime minister and I are in lockstep in our commitment to meeting the fiscal rules at the upcoming Budget.”
When is the Budget?
The Autumn Budget will take place on Wednesday 28 October at around 12:30pm – after Prime Minister’s Questions.
Most chancellors head out onto Downing Street in London with the famous red briefcase, traditionally containing the important budget documents. And while the prime minister wants to spread power to the north, the budget is still likely to take place in Westminster.
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), the UK’s fiscal watchdog, plays a role too, as the chancellor’s Budget decisions are partly informed by data and analysis provided by it.
The OBR publishes its economic and fiscal outlook just after the chancellor’s speech is finished, although last year its contents was accidentally leaked early.
After the Budget statement, MPs may be required to approve immediate changes to some taxes, such as alcohol and tobacco duties. A four-day Commons debate usually follows, after which MPs are asked to agree ‘ways and means’ resolutions to approve further tax proposals.
The last step is the Finance Bill, which gives permanent legal power to the measures introduced in the Budget. The Finance Bill often acts as a motion of confidence in the government – if it cannot pass key measures in the bill, it could be at risk of collapse.
What to expect from the 2026 Autumn Budget
In his first weeks as prime minister, Burnham announced a number of new policies centred on the cost of living, including a £2 cap on bus fares, the removal of VAT from electricity bills, the ending of rough sleeping, and a plan to give mayors a share of income tax receipts.
During the Labour Party conference in September, Burnham also announced a new scheme aimed at helping first-time buyers in England purchase a property, named “Your First Home”.
The scheme will allow people to buy a new-build home with a deposit of just 2.5%, backed by a government loan worth 20% of their property’s value to help pay for the purchase.
Full details of how the scheme will work and how the government will pay for it will be announced at the Budget.
What is rumoured to be included in the 2026 Autumn Budget?
More policies will likely be announced in the Autumn Budget. This may include support for households struggling to afford their energy bills.
In an interview with the BBC on 27 September, Burnham signalled that the government was looking at potential energy bill support for households.
He said: “[The Middle East conflict] has had an impact on people's energy costs, and we will now have to deal with that and support people as best we can through the budget. And we will do those things, but in a way that is highly prudent with the running of the UK economy.”
New energy secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh has also previously signalled the government could step in, saying in an interview with BBC Radio 4 on 26 August: “[The government is] trying to do everything that [they] can” to help households with the increased cost of energy.
If any support for energy bills is confirmed, we will likely hear about it at the Budget.
The government has also come under pressure from motorists to continue a freeze on fuel duty that was first introduced in 2022.
Keir Starmer’s government had intended to increase fuel duty by 3p a litre in September but postponed the hike until the end of the year when fuel prices soared following the start of the Iran war.
Campaign groups have called on Burnham and Healey to continue the freeze on fuel duty into 2027, and the chancellor said in an interview with The Sunday Times on 26 September he was “conscious of these pressures and I will take them into account when I make my budget decisions”.
What won’t be in the Budget?
At the Labour Party conference, Burnham outlined his plan for a new free and universal social care service operating under NHS principles.
However, Burnham made clear that plans for his new “National Care Service” would not be implemented during this parliament, which runs until 2029.
Instead, he said the policy would be at the heart of Labour’s next general election manifesto. That means we should not expect to hear any details about the care service plan at this month’s Budget.
In the same speech, Burnham also announced plans for a major shake-up to the state pension triple lock.
He said he would “adjust” the triple lock and instead ensure pensions increase each year by either inflation or a flat 2.5%. The savings made from removing the annual earnings growth element would help fund the new care service.
However, as the 2024 Labour manifesto pledged to keep the triple lock, Burnham said there would be no changes to the triple lock until April 2030, the first tax year after the next general election.
That means we should not expect any changes to the triple lock at the 2026 Budget.
Will Healey raise taxes?
Under the current Budget, the UK is projected to be in deficit until 2030. That means the chancellor has little to work with to help fund existing policies and introduce new ones while still sticking to the fiscal rules.
To find extra cash, he would have to either cut existing spending, or raise new taxes.
Burnham and Healey have both assured the country that they will stick to Labour’s 2024 manifesto commitment that income tax, National Insurance and VAT will not be increased.
Though there are growing concerns that the 2026 Budget could still increase the tax burden on the wealthy.
Rob Morgan, chief investment analyst at Charles Stanley Direct, said: “Like his Labour government predecessor, Keir Starmer, Burnham has promised not to increase VAT, income tax or National Insurance.
“Indeed, some of the strongest signals so far suggest that any future tax reforms would focus more on wealth than earnings. Homeowners, business owners, investors and those planning to pass on wealth could therefore be among the groups most affected by Budget announcements.”
Morgan added that reforms to the current property taxation system, bringing capital gains tax closer in line to income tax rates, and even changes to inheritance tax may be on the cards.
Who is responsible for the Budget?
As chancellor, Healey has ultimate responsibility for the Budget and announces the main measures in a speech before parliament.
Other ministers that have a say over the Budget include Healey’s second-in-charge Emma Reynolds, chief secretary to the Treasury, as well as other junior Treasury ministers.
A full report is published by the Treasury alongside the Budget, providing further detail on the rationale and costing behind each measure.
What is the Budget?
The Budget is an opportunity for the chancellor to set out the government’s plans for spending, taxation and the economy.
It typically takes place once a year, but previous chancellors have sometimes deviated from this schedule with two events.
When chancellors set the Budget, they aim to balance the nation’s books and ideally give themselves some financial leeway – a sort of margin for error known as ‘fiscal headroom’. This is essentially the amount by which they can increase spending or cut taxes without breaking their fiscal rules.
In the 2025 Budget, then-chancellor Rachel Reeves expanded her fiscal headroom to around £22 billion, but analysis by the Resolution Foundation says this has likely since decreased to around £10 billion.
Economic forecasts are also published at each fiscal event, giving a sense of what we can expect over the next five years.
