UK politics news today: Budget week fallout, spending cuts warning and the miners' pension row
By the Population Decides team. Every story summarised from several outlets, with links to the originals.
The dust is settling on the government's first Budget. Here is what happened this week, what the experts made of it and what changes from today, in plain English. Want the full detail? See the Budget key points or check whether you are better off.
The Budget: a £100 energy payment and a plan to scrap gas standing charges
Chancellor John Healey called Wednesday's Budget a "breathing space" for households. The headline help is a £100 payment for households in England in council tax bands A to D from January 2027, and a request to Ofgem to move gas standing charges onto the price per unit as early as 2027.
The government blamed "global economic storms", including the war in Iran, for pushing up fuel and energy costs. The harder choices on how much each department gets have been left to next year's Spending Review (see below).
The government is giving many households £100 towards energy costs and wants to scrap the fixed daily charge on gas bills. It helps, but it costs the government money it has to borrow or raise somewhere else.
The People's Verdict: Was a £100 payment the right way to help with bills?
IFS: the worst decade for household incomes on record
The Institute for Fiscal Studies, the independent tax and spending think tank, says household incomes are on track to grow only about 2% across the whole of this decade.
That compares with about 12% in the 2010s, which was itself the weakest decade since records began in the 1950s. In short, most families are treading water.
The IFS also said the government has not explained how it will pay for defence, social care, welfare and youth unemployment. New to this? Start with what fiscal drag is and what the fiscal rules are.
Explain it like I'm 15
Think of your family's money after bills. For most families it has barely grown in years, and experts expect it to grow even less this decade. That squeezes what people can afford.
Treasury warns some departments face real-terms cuts
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Emma Reynolds says not every department will get a real-terms rise at next year's Spending Review.
The government has promised to lift defence spending to 3% of GDP by 2030. Paying for that means other budgets will have to be squeezed, she said, with the international picture much worse than when Labour took office.
Which departments would you protect, and which would you cut? Set your own Budget in Population Decides.
Explain it like I'm 15
The government has promised to spend a lot more on the armed forces. The money has to come from somewhere, so some other departments will get less than prices are rising.
The People's Verdict: If money is tight, what should come first?
Labour MPs push for the £1.2bn miners' pension money
Ministers are in talks with Labour MPs from former coalfield seats over the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme. On Budget eve, MPs learned that a deal to hand over the scheme's remaining Guarantor's Fund, worth about £1.2bn, had been pulled at the last minute.
In his speech the Chancellor then promised the full transfer, and an end to the so-called standstill arrangement so that pensions keep rising. Coalfield MPs want the money released now, saying the government has taken over £4.4bn from the scheme since 1994.
The scheme's trustees said they were very disappointed that a deal they were ready to sign was withdrawn hours before the Budget.
Explain it like I'm 15
When coal mining was privatised, the government promised to back the miners' pension scheme and took a share of its spare money in return. Former miners say that money should be theirs.
The People's Verdict: Should the £1.2bn go straight to former miners?
Universities could lose £1bn from the international student levy
New Department for Education figures say universities could lose more than £1bn in income by 2030-31 from the planned £925 levy on each international student, which starts in 2028.
The government now expects 28,000 fewer international students over three years. Smaller, less prestigious universities would be hit hardest. The Russell Group wants the levy rethought.
The same Budget brought back the two-year graduate visa. The levy was designed to help cut net migration, so universities' finances are now tied up in the wider argument about how many people should come to the UK.
Explain it like I'm 15
Universities charge international students high fees, which helps pay for courses for UK students. A new charge on each international student could mean fewer come, and less money for universities.
The People's Verdict: Should universities pay a £925 levy for each international student?
From today: faster planning decisions and fairer asbestos compensation
In England, straightforward planning applications will now be decided by council planning officers instead of waiting for a committee. An AI tool trialled in three councils cut processing time for household applications from eight weeks to four, and is being rolled out to 15 more.
Also from today, families of people who died from asbestos-related diseases before they could claim will receive the full award. About 300 families a year should benefit. For a bereaved dependant of a 60-year-old, the award under the 2008 scheme rises from £24,526 to £56,656.
Explain it like I'm 15
Small planning decisions, like a house extension, will now be made by council staff instead of waiting for a committee meeting, so people get an answer faster.
A major undersea power cable, Sea Link, was given the go-ahead, the 118th energy project approved under the national planning regime.
The Prime Minister met the First Ministers of Scotland and Wales and offered to talk about deeper devolution, leaving the shape of it to the devolved governments.