Prime Minister No matter the global uncertainty, I’m on the side of the British people

The Prime Minister has vowed to “always be on the side” of the British people as changes today help workers, pensioners, and families with the cost of living. 

At a time of international uncertainty, the Government is focused on what matters most to people at home easing the cost of living now, and making sure the country is better prepared for future shocks. 

A raft of changes coming into effect today will lift 450,000 children out of poverty, provide millions of pensioners with extra help to manage rising costs, and deliver the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation.

Keir Starmer understands that families are worried about bills, the weekly shop, and what global instability could mean for their household finances. Today’s measures provide certainty now — while laying the foundations for a stronger, more secure economy. 

As a result of decisions made by this government, policies coming into effect today include

• Scrapping the two child benefit cap which will lift 450,000 children out of poverty
• The biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation through the Employment Rights Act – delivering day one paternity and parental leave as well as major reforms to Statutory Sick Pay, ensuring workers can take time off when sick without worrying about going without pay.
• Increasing the basic and new State Pensions by 4.8% for more than 12 million people – an increase worth up to £575 a year for someone on the new State Pension.
• Uprating benefits such as PIP and Housing Benefit, and increasing most working-age benefits by 3.8%, helping millions of low-income families and sick and disabled people.
• This comes alongside action the Government is taking to incentivise work and tackle ill-health, as well as boosting the standard rate of Universal Credit by 6.2% – the first ever permanent, above-inflation increase – worth around £265 more a year for a single person, or £465 more a year for a couple.

These measures follow last week’s increase in the National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage for millions of workers, alongside an average £117 a year cut to energy bills for households across the country – locked in until the end of June. 

Taken together, this action leaves the UK better placed to weather current economic challenges, while working with global partners to secure de‑escalation and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to relieve pressure on prices globally.  

Prime Minister Keir Starmer, said 

No matter the global uncertainty, my government will always be on the side of the British people in bearing down on the cost of living. 

I will never lose sight of how restless people are for change, and I am proud that today we are lifting nearly half a million children out of poverty, boosting support for pensioners, and delivering the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation.

“I know families across the country are concerned about the conflict in Iran and what it means for the cost of living. We are working closely with international partners to push for a de-escalation in the Middle East and the re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz. This is the most effective way to ease the pressure on the cost of living.
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>I am clear that our response to the current global situation will define us for a generation, which is why we are taking the right long-term decisions now to ensure we emerge from this as a stronger, more secure nation.

All these policies take effect alongside the Prime Minister’s five‑point plan to deal with the immediate impact of the conflict in the Middle East on the cost of living. 

This includes cutting energy bills by an average of £117 per household; extending the cut in fuel duty until September while closely monitoring prices at the pumps; providing £53 million to support households most exposed to heating oil price rises; strengthening Britain’s energy security by investing in clean, home‑grown energy; and continuing to push for de‑escalation in the Middle East. 

During the past week, the Prime Minister has hosted a roundtable with leaders from the energy, insurance and shipping sectors to hear directly about the challenges they are facing, chaired a COBR meeting of Cabinet ministers to coordinate the UK’s response, and asked the Foreign Secretary to bring together more than 40 countries to drive forward a plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and protect freedom of navigation.