Business
Government borrowing costs rise in wake of income tax U-turn speculation
Government borrowing costs have risen in the wake of an apparent income tax U-turn by the Chancellor.
Speculation that Rachel Reeves has scrapped her plans to raise income tax at the Budget has sparked a sell-off in UK Government bonds, also known as gilts: the means by which the Government borrows money from private investors.
The Chancellor had been expected to hike income tax in the face of a yawning gap in her spending plans, hinting as recently as Monday that the alternative would be “deep cuts” to public investment.
But the Financial Times has reported that she has now abandoned introducing those plans at the November 26 Budget over fears they could anger both voters and back bench Labour MPs.
The tax rise would break Labour’s election manifesto pledge not to raise income tax, national insurance, or VAT.
Yields on 30-year gilts jumped by up to 14 basis points in early trading, and the yield on 10-year gilts also shot up 12 basis points – rising the most since July.
The yield moves counter to the price of bonds, meaning that prices fall when yields rise.
The pound also felt an initial shock as the markets opened, but then started to recover.
Suggestions that the tax hike could be abandoned was welcomed by Health Secretary Wes Streeting.
He told the PA news agency that the Government did not comment on market movements “as a matter of policy”, but said: “What I would say about this morning is, it is really important that we keep the promises that we made to the public at the last general election.
“Our economy was broken by the Conservatives, so were our public services, but so was trust in politics itself.
“Our job is to rebuild the economy, rebuild our public services, and rebuild trust in politics.”
The Health Secretary also told broadcasters: “The fact there’s been speculation about income tax rises, I think shows two things.
“Firstly, how challenging the situation is in the public finances, and secondly, how determined the Chancellor is to stick to her fiscal rules.
“I think what we’ve learned overnight with some of the latest speculation is it’s probably wise to stop speculating, wait for the Budget. The Chancellor will make the choices she believes are the right choices for the long-term future of the country.”
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy had earlier insisted Ms Reeves would not “play fast and loose with people’s money” when she was questioned about reports the income tax rise had been abandoned.
According to the Financial Times, the decision not to raise the tax was communicated to the Office for Budget Responsibility on Wednesday, when the Chancellor submitted a list of “major measures” to be included in her Budget.
An income tax rise would help her bridge a fiscal black hole estimated by some economists to be up to £50 billion, but it would also break Labour’s manifesto pledge not to raise income tax, national insurance or VAT.
The prospect of a manifesto breach drew criticism earlier this month from Labour’s new deputy leader Lucy Powell, who said it would damage “trust in politics”.
Having vowed not to return to “austerity” through deeper spending cuts, the Chancellor could now have to rely on increases in a wider range of smaller taxes if she is to stick to her self-imposed rules on debt and borrowing.
The Financial Times suggested that one option would also be to reduce income tax thresholds while keeping tax rates the same, which could raise billions of pounds for the Treasury.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the reported U-turn was “good (if true)”.
Liberal Democrat deputy leader and Treasury spokeswoman Daisy Cooper described the move as an “11th hour screeching U-turn” but said struggling families could be spared “yet another punch-in-the-stomach Budget”.
.jpg?trim=0,0,0,0&width=1200&height=800&crop=1200:800 "What the UK bought in 2025 – from bucket hats to Labubu toys")
Bucket hats, strawberries and cream sandwiches, and Greggs sausage rolls drenched in KFC gravy defined British consumer spending this year.
We explore the nation’s purchases, month by month.
January
An average temperature of 3C as well as Storm Eowyn bringing 100mph winds and a danger to life to the UK has consumers largely staying indoors. Spending on digital content and subscriptions increased 8.3 per cent year-on-year and growth in spending on takeaways hit a year-long high of 5.1 per cent, according to Barclays.
However, alongside this, online purchases of exercise equipment rise by 60 per cent on the month before, according to Adobe, while spending on supplements including multivitamin powders and pills increases by 26 per cent and sales of fruit and vegetables rise by 24 per cent.
February
More than a quarter of UK adults (27 per cent) plan to focus more on healthy eating as the warmer weather approaches. One in three (30 per cent) say they are paying closer attention to ingredient and nutrition labels and a fifth (22 per cent) have considered, or are already growing, their own fruit and vegetables at home.
This comes as 27 per cent say they are more likely to visit shops and restaurants that offer “healthier” options, increasing to 45 per cent of those aged 18-24. Sought-after alternatives include zero-sugar treats (33 per cent), organic or whole foods (29 per cent) and low or no alcohol drinks (24 per cent).
March
Easter eggs have gone up in price by as much as 50 per cent on last year while shrinking in size, according to Which? – the result of the price of chocolate rising by 16.5 per cent in a year.
Women experiencing perimenopause and menopause are spending an average £1,800 a year on products such as vitamins and smart watches to combat symptoms such as fatigue and hot flushes, a survey suggests.
Some 76 per cent of women are buying vitamins and minerals, 52 per cent have bought supplements and 40 per cent have spent money on hormone support to help manage symptoms, the poll for buy now, pay later service Clearpay found.
April
The so-called “awful April” price hikes combined with high energy costs see the average household facing an annual increase of £1,254 from essential bill rises, according to figures from comparison site Uswitch.
The third consecutive increase to Ofgem’s price cap sees the bill of a typical household paying by direct debit rise 6.4 per cent, an increase of £111 a year or £9.25 a month after it went up by 10 per cent in October and another 1.2 per cent rise in January.
This is 9.4 per cent or £159 higher than this time last year but £531 or 22 per cent lower than at the height of the energy crisis at the start of 2023.
May
The competition watchdog announces that British vets could face a temporary price cap over concerns that pet owners are being ripped off.
The Competition and Markets Authority is looking into the veterinary industry after 56,000 people raised concerns about the sector, including that they are overpaying for medicines and prescriptions and are not being given basic information such as price lists and prescription costs.
Heinz launches a new Fish & Chips Sauce in a rebranding of the classic condiment Tartare sauce.
The food giant urged consumers to think of its new sauce as “Tartare 2.0”, with the packaging describing the contents as “Tartare Sauce” and listing ingredients as including gherkins, dill, salt, parsley and mustard.
June
Consumers begin to grapple with what will become the UK’s hottest summer on record – complete with four heatwaves between June and August.
Waitrose ice cream sales rise by 10 per cent on the year before, while John Lewis reports sales of garden furniture are up 21 per cent on the previous June, while it sells one million of its basic Anyday handheld fans over the year.
The National Lottery sells 18,600 tickets a minute on June 6 at the peak of the record £208 million EuroMillions jackpot draws.
The run of EuroMillions draws lasting more than 10 weeks generates both the highest ever UK sales of more than £550 million and the biggest ever returns to good causes in the history of the game.
Marks & Spencer launches a dessert sandwich filled with strawberries and cream.
The £2.80 “game-changing” limited edition Red Diamond Strawberry & Creme Sandwich is filled with the fruit and light whipped cream cheese on fluffy sweetened bread.
July
Oasis’s long-awaited Live ‘25 reunion tour kicks off in Cardiff on July 4.
The tour sets off a boom in sales of bucket hats, with even John Lewis reporting sales are up 40 per cent in the first half of 2025 in comparison with the same period in 2024.
Tesco reports record fruit sales as consumers seek to stay hydrated amid high temperatures.
The UK’s biggest supermarket says it has seen overall demand for fruit soar by an “unprecedented” near 10 per cent over the month, with berries, stone fruit, kiwis, melons, watermelons, pineapples, grapes and bananas all hitting record volume growth.
The grocer said it had ordered extra supplies ahead of days of forecasted 30C temperatures to cope with expected demand.
August
Greggs and KFC team up to create the “culinary crossover of the century” in the form of a sausage roll drenched in gravy.
The high street food giants worked together for the first time to offer the Greggs sausage roll with KFC gravy, claiming it is the “mash-up the nation’s been craving” and “seriously flavoursome”.
September
The extended hot summer leads to sales of swimwear breaking records at John Lewis, up 18 per cent in September and 28 per cent in October on the previous year. The late summer also saw outdoor cooking kit sales continuing to soar by 42 per cent at the department store.
Fake Labubu dolls – tipped to be a best-selling toy this Christmas – are seized amid warnings they could pose a potentially fatal choking hazard for young children.
Later this month, the Intellectual Property Office says fake toys worth more than £3.5 million have been seized at the UK border already this year, with 75 per cent of them failing critical safety tests.
Of the 259,000 fake toys intercepted at the border, 90 per cent of them – or 236,000 items – were counterfeit Labubu dolls.
High street food chain Greggs announces it is to open its first pub within the Fenwick Newcastle department store, serving exclusive beers and a menu featuring its classic bakes and sausage rolls.
October
Charlie Bigham launches a range of supermarket ready meals costing up to £30 to appeal to consumers balking at the soaring price of dining out.
The entrepreneur’s new Brasserie range of beef wellington, salmon wellington, coq au vin, duck confit and venison bourguignon was motivated by the rising cost of eating in restaurants, the entrepreneur said.
Almost half of adults (48 per cent) in Great Britain have gambled in the last four weeks, according to an annual survey by the Gambling Commission.
The headline figure falls to 28 per cent when those who had only bought tickets for a lottery draw were excluded.
Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir Nobody’s Girl goes on sale, in which she writes about her three alleged sexual encounters with the then Prince Andrew.
TGJones, formerly WHSmith, reports sales of the memoir increasing every day since its launch on October 21. The retailer said it was selling three times as many copies of the book as it predicted it would.
November
The Classic Bagel from London’s Papo’s Bagels is named Deliveroo’s most popular order among any of its worldwide operations, according to the firm.
Papo’s, an independent, family-run bagel kitchen, was the most ordered takeaway on Deliveroo this year with its Classic option, which combines smoked salmon, cream cheese, sliced red onion, tomatoes and capers.
Consumers learn fresh British-grown strawberries will be widely available to buy this Christmas after a firm extended the season to 12 months with new technology.
The Summer Berry Company, one of the UK’s leading fruit producers based near Chichester, is now growing British strawberries at a commercial scale all year round with the help of LED technology through the colder months.
The final of The Celebrity Traitors attracts 11.1 million viewers. John Lewis reports a run on wrist warmers after the show’s presenter Claudia Winkleman wears them throughout the series.
December
High street baker Greggs strikes again, launching its first range of Christmas cards which come with the gift of a sausage roll.
The range – called the Ultimate Secret Santa Surprise – includes a £3.95 card featuring heat-activated ink which, when warmed, reveals a code to redeem a free sausage roll or vegan sausage roll.
The cards come with the option to personalise some of the designs, such as by adding a loved one’s face to a sausage roll.
Consumers learn Christmas dinner will cost a few pence less than last year in some rare good news for household budgets.
A turkey and all the trimmings for four will cost an average £32.46 this year, slightly down on last year’s £32.57 – which was up 6.5 per cent on the year before, according to market research firm Worldpanel by Numerator, formerly Kantar.
Tesco announces it is giving away ‘wonky’ Christmas trees to help the nation embrace “the parts of Christmas that aren’t always perfect but are still just as wonderful”.
By Richard W. Stevenson, Mohammed Hadi, Nestor Ramos, Nikita Stewart, Michael Mason, Gilad Thaler, David Seekamp, Lauren Pruitt, Luke Piotrowski and Edward Vega
December 31, 2025
Business
No More Mandatory Probate Of Will In Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata: What Does It Mean For Heirs?
Last Updated:
Probate of wills is no longer mandatory in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata after Parliament amended Section 213 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925.
ig Relief For Families: Wills No Longer Need Probate In Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata
The probate of wills is no longer mandatory now in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. The Indian government has brought amendment into Section 213 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925 under the Repealing and Amending Act, 2025.
Probate is a court’s legal confirmation that a will is valid. It allows the executor to distribute the deceased person’s assets.
Parliament passed the Repealing and Amending Act, 2025, which deletes Section 213, ending the requirement of mandatory probate for wills in Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata.
The government argued that the rule was a colonial-era provision, discriminatory, and causing unequal treatment between communities and regions.
What does this mean for heirs now?
Heirs of Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata can claim property without probate like in other parts of the country. Banks, registrars and authorities may accept the will directly.
The process becomes faster, cheaper and less court-driven.
However, probate is still required in case there is a dispute over the will. The matter then can be proceeded with in the court for resolution.
Why was mandatory probate only for Mumbai, Chennai & Kolkata?
The mandatory probate was applicable only for these three cities, which reflects a remnant of the colonial era. The British created special succession rules only for these cities.
During British rule, Mumbai (Bombay), Chennai (Madras) and Kolkata (Calcutta) had Presidency High Courts.
Muslims and Christians were already exempt from mandatory probate even in these cities. This Section only applied over Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains and Parsis.
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December 31, 2025, 13:01 IST
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