Taxes and benefits

We unpack the Budget’s quieter tax changes, from EV policy to savings and investment reforms, and explore what these small shifts really mean.

From tax rises to new spending pressures, we break down the major decisions in a packed Autumn Budget and what they mean for the UK.

IFS researchers provide a response to the new economic forecast and major policy announcements contained in the 2025 Budget.

Freezes to local housing allowances reduce the disposable incomes of low-income private renters. LHA rates should be regularly and locally uprated.

Where does the government spend its money, why are cuts challenging, and what options does the Chancellor really have to reduce the size of the state.

Personal tax thresholds have been frozen since 2023 or earlier, meaning inflation erodes their real value. Extending freezes to 2029–30 raises £8bn.

A look at how the bond market influences the cost of government debt and what that means for the Budget.

We study the reasons for rising in-work poverty in the 25 years up to the pandemic.

What are the Chancellor’s options for raising tax, and what would they mean for households, the economy and growth?

How the UK’s complex VAT system could be simplified to raise revenue more fairly and efficiently.

How council tax, stamp duty and other property taxes could be reformed to make the UK’s tax system fairer and more efficient.

All our IFS analysis of Chancellor Rachel Reeves' Autumn Budget 2025.

We unpack how the UK taxes savings, capital gains, and wealth — and ask what a fair, efficient system should look like.

An analysis of the key design considerations and potential impacts of council tax reform in Scotland.

How has the two-child limit affected child poverty and other outcomes? What options for altering this policy does the government have?

How the UK’s income tax system is poorly designed - and how reforms could make it fairer, simpler, and more efficient.

We explore the UK’s public finances and why further fiscal consolidation may be needed to meet the government’s borrowing and debt rules.