Politics
Healey's Budget shields pensioners from income tax as apprenticeship overhaul targets youth jobs
October 26, 2026 at 01:32 PM
Coverage
3 reports · over 7 hours
TGThe Guardian
Healey is expected to shield low-income pensioners from income tax – but how will it work?
(opens the publisher’s site)
BNBBC News
John Healey's Budget to shield low-income pensioners from income tax
(opens the publisher’s site)
TGThe Guardian
Higher training costs for older workers risks plan to tackle youth jobs crisis, employers say
(opens the publisher’s site)Chancellor John Healey will deliver his Budget on Wednesday, shielding low-income pensioners from income tax alongside apprenticeship funding reform favouring young workers.
- Healey's Budget, being printed this evening, will be delivered on Wednesday lunchtime and shields low-income pensioners from income tax.
- Ministers plan to raise the cost of training over-25 workers in England by 25%, with levy funds covering 75% of costs.
- Robert Halfon of Make UK said the plan would shift opportunities around rather than create new ones, urging Healey to grow apprenticeship numbers instead.
- A government spokesperson said the £3.3bn reform would reverse a 40% decline in youth apprenticeship starts and deliver 50,000 additional apprenticeships.
- The new allowance will be aligned with the full new state pension, ensuring retirees whose only income is the state pension pay no income tax.
- Former pensions minister Steve Webb warned the policy could prove messy and increasingly expensive, with cliff-edge problems for small private incomes.