Chancellor John Healey will suspend import tariffs on more than 100 products including marmalade and gherkins ahead of Wednesday's Budget, the government announced. The tariff removals aim to reduce household costs by up to £21 per year when combined with existing suspensions on pasta, fruit juice and tuna.
Marmalade will lose a 20% tariff plus an additional £19 per 100kg import charge. Healey attributed the measure to global pressures, saying wars in Iran and Ukraine have driven up everyday costs for families. "We can't control global events, but we can act where we can make a difference," he said.
The package includes other measures beyond tariff cuts. The government will make permanent a 55p per mile tax-free mileage rate for those driving up to 10,000 miles for work, with rates rising to 35p per mile above that threshold. A new taper mechanism will replace the current cliff-edge loss of carer's allowance payments, allowing carers to earn more without losing their entire allowance. Self-employed fathers will receive two weeks of paternity pay, previously unavailable to them. The government will also freeze fuel duty and continue a 5p duty discount first introduced in 2022.
Additional measures include rolling out hundreds of Post Office drop boxes for parcels.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham framed the moves as addressing everyday fairness, saying they will help "a nurse driving for work, a parent spending those precious first weeks with your new baby, or an unpaid carer picking up an extra shift."
The Conservative opposition rejected the announcement. Shadow Chancellor Andrew Griffith called it "an insult to families hammered by Labour's tax rises," saying cheaper gherkins fail to address rising supermarket costs and struggling households. Griffith argued the measures have been erased by higher borrowing costs, taxes and inflation.