What a mess – me, and others, being able to read the Budget before Ms Reeves had delivered her news because the OBR report was posted online a little earlier than planned – before the Budget would you believe!
The Budget today, the second for Ms Reeves, has been eagerly anticipated for all the wrong reasons. The cynical ploy of drip feeding us possibilities in the lead up to a Budget is now seemingly the norm and is getting out of hand. I suspect it is done so that the markets do not get spooked as they did with the infamous effort from Truss/Kwarteng.
However, all the ‘noise’ simply created confusion, uncertainty and a feeling that the Labour party have no economic or tax nous. She received a sound rebuke from the Deputy Speaker for all the leaks, with the Deputy Speaker saying that it was disrespectful to Parliament.
All the leaking and switching was ill thought out and a spectacular failure. The Labour Party may come to regret the lead up to, and delivery of, a mish mash of measures where courage, conviction, and some bold moves should have been the order of the day. 
None of the measures announced in her last Budget, nor this one sadly, will stimulate growth.
The nettles are clear to all – she needs to grasp them if she is in post for the next Budget.
I have to say that some of the comments I heard from Ms Badenoch in her response to the speech were quite funny!
Autumn Budget 2025: in short
A toe-curling speech with repeated references to the Tories. She should get over it – some of the mess is of her own making. I lost track of the number of disingenuous statements.
A mass of tax rises here and there with no coherent policy on tax anywhere to be seen.
We are all happy to pay more tax if we know why and what we will get for it. Funding the bloated public sector is not a valid reason!
No material spending cuts, no check on the public sector gravy train, no welfare benefit restrictions, tinkering tax rises everywhere, and no obvious tax policy. Simplification of the UK tax code – not a chance.
No real hope or incentives for anyone wanting to create financial security for their families, their businesses or for them to incentivise those that work with them.
Stop now or read on for the full horror of what has just been announced!
To simplify matters, the main tax figures are in my second article, which provides a more detailed analysis. Click here to read it in full.
Autumn Budget 2025: A full summary
The changes announced in the Budget last year were unpleasant and have had a hugely detrimental effect on the UK economy, a fact conveniently ignored by Ms Reeves in her cringing speech on 4 November which told us nothing. The list of who/what was to blame for the economic mess was hilarious and missing one important contributory factor – Ms Reeves and her actions and inactions.
The notion spouted by Ms Reeves that the Budget last year would not hit ‘working folk’ was disingenuous and showed a complete lack of comprehension of how life works, never mind tax and economics. Take an obvious example. The large supermarkets, who employ a lot of staff with many on the minimum wage, have sound financial models which cannot absorb the full cost increases Ms Reeves created, thus shelf prices have increased. Everyone must pay the inflated prices and not just the select tax-paying group she may have in her sights!
Furthermore, is there now any point in building a business in the UK? Can existing or potential employers afford to employ anyone? Are pension contributions worthwhile? Do farmers sell the farm to developers now? Is buying and owning a home now seen as a tax raising opportunity for the Labour Party?
The above points may seem strange but are ones which have been troubling many since the first Labour scattergun tax-raising Budget last year. The Labour Party have their sights firmly set on the wealth creators and asset owners, with no clear policy for taxation at any level.
In her speech earlier this month, and all the deliberate leaks since then, Ms Reeves was seemingly, and rather cynically in my view, bracing us all for tax increases that could break the Labour party manifesto pledges. She suggested that we all need to play our part. I, and I am sure many others, would have no problem with that if indeed any changes announced are fair and are not simply aimed at those the government ‘does not like’ for whatever misguided reasons.
Ms Reeves then went back on her income tax increase ‘threat’, presumably because someone whispered in her ear that she should not break the manifesto pledges for fear of creating a lack of faith in the Labour Party. I am sorry, but with all the U-turns and other nonsense in the past few months, faith in the administration has long since disappeared. One recent survey suggested that nobody had any faith in the Labour Party’s handling of the economy!
So, what did Ms Reeves finally announce?
The main points for me were:
- The early release of the Budget measures;
- No increase in the basic rate of income tax;
- Tax rises for dividend, savings and property income;
- An extension to the freeze on income tax thresholds (fiscal drag);
- No curbs on the public sector drain on the public finances;
- The ‘Mansion Tax’;
- The removal of the two child cap on Child Benefits; and
- Tinkering all over the place which will raise little other than the hackles of tax advisers and their clients.
Ms Reeves claimed in her speech that her measures would stimulate growth. I am not convinced that the announced measures will lead to the material economic growth the government, and the country, is hoping for. We needed quick fixes, but I see none here.
We also need certainty and clarity on what the future tax landscape looks like so that all taxpayers, individuals and businesses alike, can plan accordingly. Not knowing whether the rules will be changed completely, such as they have been with the potential IHT treatment of pension pots, can create unnecessary worry and stress.
How can businesses plan for the future if they cannot forecast what a wage bill might be in ten years’ time? Why would they commit to a major investment if they are unsure whether they will have any tax incentives for capital and other spending? There have been many recent examples of businesses cancelling expansion plans in the UK because of the lack of focus and direction from our tax policy makers.
There are so many sectors of the economy crying out for help and no more pain. These pleas seem to have fallen on deaf ears.
What didn’t Ms Reeves announce
The following are some of the measures which would have been good to see but alas were conspicuously absent from today’s announcements.
- Any measures to simplify the nonsensically complicated tax code which Ms Reeves, and many Chancellors before her, is using to her advantage to the detriment of individuals and businesses alike;
- Any measures to slash the ever increasing welfare benefits bill. It cannot be right that it is more remunerative for an individual to sit at home doing nothing than working for a living. I accept that there are many who would love to work but cannot because of factors beyond their control, but there are also those who believe that living off the state is a good enough job for them;
- Scrapping stamp duty on property purchases and on shares. The former would not be as costly as might be imagined simply because of the increased tax take from the stimulated construction sector. The latter would help stem the flow of investment out of the UK stock market;
- Increase the equity ISA limit to stimulate investment in the UK stock market;
- Revisit the IHT changes announced last year. I am hearing so many stories from clients and others about the worry and uncertainty that has been caused. What now for succession for family businesses and farms which have been built up over generations only now to face sale or closure because Ms Reeves and her cronies seemingly think that industry and farming can be plundered. If I were to be more cynical than normal, it looks like a tax system based on envy;
- Reversal of the IHT changes which will bring pension pots into the IHT net. For years prudent folk have been encouraged to save for their retirement knowing that the taxman’s shovel was firmly locked away. A bit of a kick in the teeth to now be told that all our diligent saving and investing is now fair game for the tax man. A bit like having a London Olympics gold medal for the 100 metres, which is now taken away because you did not run it in 5 seconds – the world record is 9.58 seconds (Usain Bolt) by the way, but you see my point. Retrospective taxation is a horrid thing;
- Curbing public sector gold plated pensions. It cannot be right that the wealth (growth) creators are penalised with the pension restrictions we now have. There are far fewer concerns for those working in, and retiring from, the public sector. Mr Starmer’s pension is well protected, so he is OK, for which we are all truly grateful;
- Slashing spending on infrastructure. As an example, why nobody thought to abandon HS2 during the pandemic I will never understand. The pandemic showed us how quickly working practices can change and I fear that when HS2 (as restricted in any event) finally becomes operational the number of travellers will be far fewer than forecast. Think of all the hospitals or affordable housing which could have been built with the savings;
- Charge customs duty on small parcels now and not in 2029 as planned. This would limit the damage being caused by low value imports into the UK from China;
- Reinstate the VAT-free shopping for overseas visitors. A no brainer really given the level of trade this could create; and
- Introduce a freeze on public sector employment and put in place measures to reduce the size of the public sector payroll. I am not advocating an Elon Musk ‘DOGE’ approach for the UK, but the public sector is bloated and costing too much which must be financed with the piecemeal tax increases we are now faced with.
Conclusions
As I mentioned at the beginning of this release, not a pleasant Wednesday for a lot of us I suspect.
Once Ms Reeves had finished blaming everyone and everything bar herself, she quickly led us through her tax rises for savers, pensioners, homeowners, and in some cases, for companies.
Why she decided not to increase income tax I cannot fathom. I accept that the Labour Party made pledges in their manifesto, but the economic factors here in the UK and world events I would have thought would have given Ms Reeves excuses a plenty for breaking the pledge. Income tax is a huge earner, and any increase would have eliminated the need to tinker as she has done.
My fear is that the measures announced today will do little to stimulate growth.
Ms Reeves mentioned further funding for HMRC to deal with tax avoidance both in terms of ensuring that taxpayers pay what they owe, and the promoters of tax avoidance schemes are targeted, there is still a degree of naivete in my view in this area. I do not believe it is quite so easy to recoup the sums mentioned from those who are determined not to pay their way. This is evidenced by the massive loss to the Treasury during the pandemic.
Yet again, there was no mention in the speech of any attempt to simplify the UK tax code, or indeed address some of the troubling issues which are in prospect such as Making Tax Digital (‘MTD’) for income tax which will affect landlords and the self-employed next year. The first MTD wave will catch those with turnover over £50,000. Please see my second article for a little more detail.
The seeming lack of appreciation of how complicated tax compliance is becoming is a disappointment for me.
All seem to be in her sights for tax rises, but there was no attempt to deal with the elephant in the room – the public sector which is gobbling up tax at a frightening rate. No tax incentives that I could see.
All in all, a miserable Wednesday.
It will be interesting to see how long Mr Starmer and Ms Reeves stay in their roles after this dismal betrayal of the electorate.
Can someone please turn off the lights when we have all left the country!
Contact
If you have any questions, or other points, in connection with the contents of this summary of the November 2025 Budget, please do not hesitate to get in touch through the normal channels.
Disclaimer
Please bear in mind that the above are my personal views which may not resonate with everyone. It is a general overview of the November 2025 Budget announcements.
Please take appropriate detailed professional advice before acting on any of the points made in this or my second overview.