The pockets of millions of Brits are set to feel a bit fuller next year as Labour has confirmed an uplift in the Budget.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced today that benefits like Universal Credit, Personal Independence Payment (PIP), and Pension Credit will climb with September’s Consumer Price Index (CPI), enjoying a 1.7% boost.
This aligns with Reeves’ 2023 sentiments when she mentioned it was “tradition” for September’s inflation figure to uplift benefits under a Labour leadership. On the BBC, she remarked: “If you pick and choose from year to year which inflation number is the cheapest thing to do, then what you see is the gradual erosion of people’s incomes.”
Mandatory to adjust each April with inflation are nine benefits, according to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) laws, reports the Mirror.
While other benefits, such as Universal Credit, generally expect a hike too, they await the nod from Parliament. So, which benefits are legally bound to align with inflation?
(Image: PA)
Universal Credit, the most widely claimed benefit from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), is currently received by over six million people in the UK. The standard allowance for single claimants under 25 is £311.68, while those over 25 receive £393.45.
With a 1.7% increase, these amounts will rise to £316.98 and £400.14 respectively. Joint claimants under 25 currently receive £489.23 a month, which will increase to £497.55 with the 1.7% rise.
For joint claimants over 25, the current monthly amount of £617.60 will rise to £628.10. State pension payments are also set to increase by approximately 4% next April due to the Triple Lock Promise.
This promise, first introduced by the Tories and now adopted by Labour, ensures state pension payments rise by the highest of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for September, average wage growth between May and July, or 2.5%. Earlier this month, it was confirmed that wage growth was at 4.1%, while inflation was at 1.7%.
This means state pensions will increase by 4% in April 2025, as confirmed in today’s Budget. If you receive the old state pension, your weekly payment of £169.50 will rise to £176.28 from next April.
Those on the new state pension will see their weekly payment of £221.20 increase to £230.05 next year.
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