Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on 5 April 2026 that new measures will come into effect to support workers, pensioners and families with the cost of living. The changes include scrapping the two‑child benefit cap, lifting 450,000 children out of poverty, upgrading workers’ rights through the Employment Rights Act, increasing basic and new State Pensions by 4.8 %, uprating benefits such as PIP and Housing Benefit, and raising the standard rate of Universal Credit by 6.2 %. Other actions cited are a 4.8 % pension rise, a 3.8 % benefit increase, and a permanent 6.2 % uplift in Universal Credit, along with a 4.8 % rise in the National Living Wage and a £117 annual cut to energy bills. The government said the measures will help the country weather current economic challenges and secure long‑term stability.
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