Delivering in Government: your weekly round up of good news Labour stories

It was a busy week for the Labour government.

While commentators picked apart John Healey’s first Budget, there was plenty in it to make a tangible difference to people’s lives.

Here are the seven most exciting breakthroughs and announcements this week that you can use, whether you’re on the doorstep, sparring on social media, or debating in the pub.

1. Scrapping gas standing charges

Labour is abolishing the fixed daily fee on household gas bills.

Around 23 million homes pay it whether they use any gas or not, typically at a cost of around £108 a year. Its cost will move onto the price of each unit of gas instead, so households that use less will pay less.

Around 60 percent of households are expected to save an average of £45 a year. Labour has asked Ofgem to make the change, with the aim of implementing it by the end of 2027, and will set out extra help for the small number of households who’d otherwise pay more.

2. Minimum wage rises to £13.21

Labour is boosting pay for the lowest-paid workers in the country.

From April 2027, the National Living Wage for over-21s goes up by 3.9 percent. That’s worth around £975 a year to someone working full time.

Around 2.3 million workers are expected to benefit, and the rise is forecast to outpace inflation. The rate for 18-to-20-year-olds also rises to £11.27.

3. Doubling funding to end rough sleeping

Labour has promised everyone sleeping rough will have a route off the streets for the rest of this Parliament.

An extra £432 million takes the total to £874 million. It builds on the £442 million announced in the summer to make sure everyone sleeping rough is offered a route off the streets by Christmas, while keeping support going beyond March 2027.

The government has also secured pledges from businesses and charities at the first ever Rough Sleeping Summit in Downing Street, including at least 2,000 homes and bedspaces from housing associations.

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4. Ending the Carer’s Allowance cliff edge

Labour has pledged to fix a trap that leaves people looking after loved ones worse off for earning more.

Right now, anyone earning even a penny over the weekly limit loses their entire allowance. Under the change, support will be reduced by £1 for every extra £1 earned, which should also cut the overpayments that have plunged carers into debt.

Separately, paternity pay will be extended to more than 150,000 extra parents a year, including self-employed dads.

5. Banning vape sales to children

Labour has closed the loopholes that allowed shops to sell nicotine pouches to kids.

Selling nicotine vapes to under-18s was already illegal. As of this week, under the Tobacco and Vapes Act, nicotine-free vapes and products like nicotine pouches, strips, and pearls can’t be sold to them either.

For the first time, adults also commit an offence if they buy these products for someone under 18. Free giveaways, big discounts, and vending machine sales of these products are banned too.

6. Record magistrate recruitment

Labour has brought in thousands of new volunteers to hear cases in local courts.

More than 3,800 magistrates have been recruited since the election. Almost 1,500 joined in the first six months of this year, nearly double the number who joined in the same period last year.

Alongside this, a £4 million TV and social media campaign aims to increase the number of magistrates to 21,000 by 2028, so more cases get heard and victims wait less time for justice.

7. Cheaper EV charging on residential streets

Labour is slashing the price of topping up an electric car for drivers without a driveway.

Around a third of households have no off-street parking, so they rely on public chargers. Prices at slower chargers, the kind found on residential streets, have risen 69% in real terms since 2021. From spring 2027, £100 million over two years will be used to bring those prices down, saving drivers who use them around £150 a year.

Separately, drivers no longer need planning permission to run a charging cable under the pavement from their home to their car.

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