Global Mobility Articles & Briefings

The Autumn Budget 2026

The first Budget of any new administration is an opportunity to establish a new narrative. Both the new Chancellor and the new Prime Minister have been keen to promise "new hope", "a little breathing space", and "everyday fixes", while talking up fiscal discipline and responsibility. A first Budget is also an opportunity to show that difficult choices are being confronted, decisions taken, rather than deferred, and that the new government truly grasps the scale of the challenges it faces.

The Chancellor's speech focused on small wins for workers, households and small businesses, new incentives for founders and entrepreneurs, limited tax increases on investment income, banks, gambling and the oil and gas sector, and investment targeted at promoting economic growth. Beyond the headlines, however, are more fundamental changes yet to come, not least the ambitious devolution of funding for local and regional government, and a wealth of challenges yet to be addressed.