Educational, not advice. This article sets out what the UK government has changed or announced since July 2026 that affects household finances. It is general information, not personal financial advice. Savvy Investor Guide is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, and this piece takes no view on whether any of these policies is right.
Andy Burnham became Prime Minister on 20 July 2026, and John Healey was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer the same day. Eleven weeks on, with the first Budget just over three weeks away on 28 October, this is a guide to the new government and your money, from the one change already in force to the allowances that have not moved.
Who holds the jobs that touch your money
| Role | Holder | In post since |
|---|---|---|
| Prime Minister | Andy Burnham | 20 July 2026 |
| Chancellor | John Healey | 20 July 2026 |
| Chief Secretary to the Treasury | Emma Reynolds | July 2026 |
| Work and Pensions Secretary | Pat McFadden | 5 September 2025 |
| Housing Secretary | Angela Rayner | 20 July 2026 |
| Energy Secretary | Miatta Fahnbulleh | 20 July 2026 |
Interest rates are not in that list. The Bank of England sets Bank Rate independently, and it has held it at 3.75% since before the change of government, most recently on 17 September.
What the new government has changed for your money
VAT on household electricity is 0% from 1 October. It was 5%, and this is so far the one change in force that reaches most households directly. HM Revenue and Customs describes it as a “temporary zero rate of VAT for qualifying supplies of electricity in Great Britain, for the period 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027.” Gas and other household fuels stay at 5%, and the cut does not apply in Northern Ireland. The government put the cost at “around £850 million in 2026-27”. Our piece on the electricity VAT cut has the arithmetic, and the October price cap article shows what it does to a typical bill.
What has been announced, with a date
- Landlord register, from December 2026. A national landlord registration service in England is to roll out “region by region” from December.
- Bus fares, from 1 January 2027. The cap on single bus fares in England outside London falls from £3 to £2 and runs to the end of 2027.
- Subscriptions, from January 2027. New rules on subscription contracts are due to take effect, including a “14-day cooling-off period”.
- Cash ISAs, from 6 April 2027. The amount under-65s can put into a cash ISA each year falls to £12,000, inside the unchanged £20,000 overall limit. This was decided before the change of government and is going ahead. Our cash ISA cap guide covers it.
- The State Pension triple lock, from April 2030. The triple lock stays as it is for the April 2027, 2028 and 2029 increases and is then adjusted. The government says it will legislate during this Parliament. See what changes for the State Pension from 2030.
What is waiting for the Budget on 28 October
A first-time buyer scheme. On 26 September the housing department said an equity loan scheme called Your First Home “will be confirmed at next month’s Budget”. It “is expected to support 2.5% deposits, backed by 20% government-backed equity loans”, for first-time buyers of new-build homes in England. The income cap, the price caps, the cost and the start date are all left to the Budget.
Anything further on energy bills. The electricity VAT cut is funded to 31 March 2027. The announcement said “any further action, including on funding for longer-term measures, will be taken at the Budget”.
Leasehold fees. On 29 September the government said it “will legislate” for powers to cap leaseholders’ permission and administration fees, and that it intends to introduce “independent regulation of property agents”. There is a consultation to come and no date yet.
As at 1 October, nothing has been announced for the Budget on income tax rates, the personal allowance, ISA limits or pension allowances.
What has not changed
| Item | Where it stands |
|---|---|
| Personal allowance | £12,570, frozen to April 2031 |
| Income tax rates | 20%, 40% and 45% in England, Wales and Northern Ireland |
| ISA allowance | £20,000 a year |
| Pension annual allowance | £60,000 |
| Full new State Pension | £241.30 a week, 2026 to 2027 |
| State Pension age | Rising to 67 between April 2026 and April 2028 |
| Bank Rate | 3.75%, set by the Bank of England |
The frozen allowance matters to pensioners in particular, because the full new State Pension is on course to pass it in April 2027. Our piece on the State Pension and the personal allowance explains what that means for tax, and the State Pension age explainer covers the timetable beyond 67.
The rules the Chancellor says he will keep
Mr Healey has not published new fiscal rules. In a speech on 7 September he described the commitment for the Budget in three parts: “balancing the books, with a buffer to protect against uncertainty,” “controlling borrowing to bear down on inflation,” and “reducing long term pressures on our public finances.” The formal rules are the ones in the Treasury’s existing Charter for Budget Responsibility, and the Office for Budget Responsibility will judge the Budget against them on the day. How much room they leave is the subject of our piece on gilt yields and fiscal headroom.
Dates to watch
- 20 October: earnings figures from the Office for National Statistics.
- 21 October: September inflation, the figure that fixes next April’s State Pension rise.
- 28 October: the Budget, with the OBR’s forecast.
- 5 November: the Bank of England’s next decision on Bank Rate.
Sources
- gov.uk, ministers’ pages for Andy Burnham and John Healey.
- HM Treasury, Chancellor’s letter to the Treasury Select Committee on the Budget date, 31 July 2026.
- HM Revenue and Customs, Temporary zero rate of VAT for domestic electricity in Great Britain, 8 September 2026; Prime Minister’s Office, announcement of the VAT cut, 21 July 2026.
- Prime Minister’s Office, bus fare cap announcement, 22 July 2026, and subscription rules announcement, 9 August 2026.
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, New first-time buyer scheme to be confirmed at Budget, 26 September 2026; renters announcement, 9 September 2026; leaseholders announcement, 29 September 2026.
- HM Revenue and Customs, Reduction in the cash ISA limit, 17 September 2026.
- HM Treasury, Chancellor John Healey’s Growth Speech 2026, 7 September 2026.
- gov.uk, Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances, Individual Savings Accounts, pension annual allowance and the new State Pension; Bank of England, Bank Rate.