Emeritus Professor Joe Nellis, Head of Economic Research at MHA, the accountancy and advisory firm, comments:

The Chancellor’s Budget has focused on maintaining fiscal discipline and improving living standards, rather than having a strategy for growth. This makes it a stabilising Budget, but not particularly ambitious.

But given the objective – to buy some breathing space – has it been a successful one? The financial markets have not been spooked, a number of small relief measures were announced for households suffering with the cost-of-living, and only a small number of (publicly unpopular) business sectors face higher taxes.

In many ways, this remained a Labour Budget. Commitments to strong public services, ending homelessness, and supporting those most in need, are true to type. But at the same time this was fiscally responsible. While the headroom was not restored to the same level, measures have been taken to slowly recover it to £15bn by 2029-30 and £22bn by 2030-31.

 

James Kipping, head of Private Client at MHA, adds: The Chancellor’s budget announcement appears simultaneously to reduce the BADR lifetime gains limit from £1m to £500K while introducing Founder’s Relief from April 2027 at 10% on up to £10m of lifetime gains.

The new relief is undoubtedly good news for UK entrepreneurs. Although it might have sounded like somewhat of a reinstatement of Entrepreneurs’ Relief at pre-2020 levels, it will be in a much narrower form. To qualify, individuals must hold at least 25% of the company at the start of trading and the company must also meet minimum turnover and employment thresholds and satisfy two of three specified growth and innovation tests, which will be subject to consultation.

He said it was a measure to encourage people to start, build and scale businesses in the UK. But a £10m turnover threshold seems a long way off when starting out in business. It therefore sounds like too tight a relief, although perhaps it reflects the government’s recognition that entrepreneurs are leaving the UK and is intended to encourage founders of established businesses to stay.

The Chancellor emphasised in his speech that high street businesses are the heart of the community, but a successful high street start-up may never be able to benefit from this new relief. If so, their founders will be taxed at a higher rate than founders of larger businesses.

Also, how will this interact with succession planning that founders of family businesses will undoubtedly have been considering or implementing since the significant restrictions to IHT business property relief from April 2026? Will qualification be passed down to the next generation?

Joe Nellis concludes:  This has been a Budget to calm the nerves, but it lacked the vision to create an economy generating long-term sustainable growth.

 

Small business rate relief

Rajeev Shaunak, head of consumer at MHA, comments:

The increase in small business rate relief is a positive measure for independent retailers, hospitality businesses and leisure operators that continue to face significant cost pressures. The increase in the relief threshold should provide meaningful support for the smallest businesses.

Taking 70,000 businesses out of paying business rates altogether is a strong headline and should be welcomed by high-street operators, particularly in local communities where small businesses remain under pressure.

The measure appears targeted at smaller businesses rather than larger retail and hospitality groups, many of which will continue to face substantial property-related costs.

Whilst helpful, the overall financial benefit may be modest when compared to other cost increases businesses are facing, including wage inflation, employment costs and broader operating cost pressures.

The announcement is likely to be viewed more as targeted support for the smallest operators rather than a transformational measure for the sector as a whole.

Funding the measure through higher gambling taxes may prove politically attractive, although it remains to be seen whether this creates any unintended consequences for that sector.

From a retail and consumer perspective, the announcement signals continued government recognition of the challenges facing town centres and high streets, even if the direct economic impact is relatively limited.

Colin Johnson, Partner at MHA in Preston, adds: The devolution of business rates could change the relationship between councils and their local business communities, particularly in areas heavily dependent on retail, hospitality and leisure. A stronger link between local economic activity and locally controlled revenues potentially gives councils a greater financial incentive to support business growth. Combined with the additional income that is likely to be generate from the Tourism Levy, this could give significant additional spending power to some councils, although you would suspect this will be combined with greater devolvement of expenditure.

 

New homeowners.

Dominic Thackray, Independent Financial Adviser at MHA, comments: 

There are two announcements in the 2026 Autumn Budget to support new homeowners.

The First Time Buyer ISA replaces the Lifetime ISA in 2029. The Government uplift of 25% of the amount saved is applied at the point of purchase rather than upfront. Saving £4,000 annually gives you £5,000 when you use it for a first home deposit. This can be used in conjunction with the Lifetime ISA, with limits applying.

Healey has also rather sensibly removed the penalty for using an existing LISA where the value of the home purchased is over the cap, even if you do not benefit from the uplift. Previously, this carried an effective penalty of 6.25%, which still applies to any other withdrawals.

Along with this, Your First Home, a new Equity Loan scheme backed by the Government, has also been created to support new homeowners in purchasing new-build properties. In short, it requires a minimum 2.5% deposit, a 20% loan from the Government, which takes an equivalent equity stake in the home, and the rest as a mortgage, with the aim of creating 70,000 new households.

This is a reintroduction of the previously successful Help to Buy scheme, which helped 300,000 people onto the property ladder over 10 years. There is no interest on the Government loan initially (5 years if it replicates the previous scheme), and low interest thereafter, as the Government participates in your home’s growth in value while helping to lower the barrier to entry.

This is a step in the right direction. However, with high interest rates, high rental costs and house price inflation having historically outpaced wage growth, it should not take Government incentives that risk inflating house prices to allow people to get onto the property ladder. A better environment for young people should make these incentives unnecessary.