Chancellor Rachel Reeves tells the BBC she would not want to repeat the £40bn tax rise Budget and she wants faster growth than has been forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR)
Employers will bear the brunt of the £40bn in tax rises unveiled earlier by Reeves - the biggest increase in a generation
The OBR, which assesses the health of the UK's economy, said the package of economic measures unveiled by Reeves would ultimately "leave GDP largely unchanged in five years" - read the key announcements here
Analysis: This is what you might call a kitchen-sink Budget, which includes one of the biggest single tax-raising measures in history, writes economics editor Faisal Islam
On spending, Reeves announces a £22.6bn increase in the "day-to-day health budget" for the NHS and £5bn in house building investment
Reacting to the Budget, Tory leader Rishi Sunak calls it "an enormous borrowing spree" which contains "broken promise after broken promise"
Chancellor says Budget will raise taxes by £40bn
The Budget speech usually starts at about 12:30 UK time and lasts around an hour. It will be broadcast live on the BBC iPlayer and on the BBC News website.
The current leader of the opposition, Conservative Party leader Rishi Sunak, will give a speech responding to the Budget as soon as Reeves sits down.
We'll bring you live updates and analysis here throughout.
Interim director of policy at Citizens Advice Tom MacInnes says the Budget is a "great opportunity" for the chancellor to help out "some of the people who have been particularly badly hit over the last couple of years”.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he says the charity wants to see more help for private renters on low incomes and the disabled, as well as targeted support for those expected to struggle with the cost of energy this winter.
He says Citizens Advice would also welcome reforms to universal credit to reduce deductions – money taken from benefit payments to repay loans and debts – arguing there is a "design flaw" in the system seeing people pay back money at "really high rates".
Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/ShutterstockThe director of the UK hospitality industry group says increased costs in the hospitality sector could see businesses going under.
Fiona Eastwood, who is also chief operating officer at events giant Merlin Entertainment, says the government's "doom and gloom messaging" has impacted consumer confidence - and consequently how much they're willing to spend.
The rumoured measures - which will be confirmed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves today - could add a total of £1.9bn to the hospitality wage bill, she says.
"In a survey done this month, 29% of industry members reduced profit this year, 12% broke even and 18% were operating a loss.
"So with these increased costs you could see 30% of those businesses going under," she tells BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
Labour has repeatedly said that it needs to make difficult financial decisions.
When the party took power in July, Reeves said it had "inherited the worst set of circumstances since the Second World War" - something the Conservatives deny.
Reeves is now looking to make tax rises and spending cuts to the value of £40bn, according to government sources. She has repeatedly said there will be "no return to austerity", suggesting most of that gap will need to be filled with tax rises rather than spending cuts.
She will not be borrowing more to fill that gap, as she is setting herself a rule that all day-to-day spending should be funded from taxes raised.
However, investment is governed by a different rule, and the chancellor is switching to a different definition for government debt to allow the government to borrow more to fund new big projects.
The new rules would give her more room to borrow, up to £50bn more, to invest in building projects such as roads, railways and hospitals. She is not expected to borrow the full £50bn.
Image source, EPALast month, Labour held its party conference - a multi-day event in which its policies are decided with speeches, debates and networking.
Looking ahead to her first Budget, Reeves’s spoke of "no return to austerity" when she address delegates. She said it would be a Budget for economic growth and investment, stability and a new industrial strategy to spread wealth across Britain.
"Yes, we must deal with the Tory legacy and that means tough decisions, but I won't let that dim our ambition for Britain," she told the conference.
"So, it will be a Budget with real ambition, a Budget to fix the foundations, a Budget to deliver the change that we promised, a Budget to rebuild Britain."
Douglas Fraser
Scotland business & economy editor
Most of today’s predicated tax rises will affect Scots, though for income tax, only the starting threshold applies north of the border.
Property transactions tax is also devolved.
Some of Rachel Reeves’ spending decisions only affect Scots indirectly, as Holyrood MSPs get to decide how funds are allocated.
There will be a Budget statement from Scottish finance secretary Shona Robison on 4 December and to get that through the Scottish Parliament, she'll need the support of an opposition party.
For more details on now today’s statement could affect Scotland, you can read my article.
Image source, UK ParliamentChancellor Rachel Reeves will deliver the Budget speech in the House of Commons in Westminster.
It will start at around 12:30 GMT, just after Prime Minister’s Questions, and should last about an hour. It will be broadcast live on the BBC iPlayer and on the BBC News website. You can tune in here by clicking Watch Live at the top of the page.
Rishi Sunak, the leader of the opposition, will respond to the Budget as soon as Reeves sits down. It will be one of his last set-piece events as Conservative Party leader after he announced his plans to stand down after losing the general election. His successor will be revealed on 2 November after a leadership election.
MPs will then debate the Budget. This can go for several days, before the government introduces a Finance Bill to turn the proposals into law.
Dharshini David
Chief economics correspondent
Regardless of who is in the frame, the Budget is set to confirm that the nation’s tax bill is set to rise by billions.
Under previous Conservative plans, the tax burden - the proportion of the UK’s income going to the tax office - was due to reach 37.1% which is the highest since the Second World War. Now it could top 38% by 2030, a new record.
That would leave the UK in the middle of the international pack, with a greater burden than the US and Japan but less than the average in the Eurozone.
But the burden is rising particularly fast here because the chancellor wants all spending on public services in five years time to be matched by income. But even tax rises of £30bn may just let the budgets for areas such as law and order and housing keep pace with inflation.
Because health, welfare and interest payments on public debt have taken increasing shares of government spending as we get older, sicker and have borrowed more.
So while the state is getting bigger, it may not deliver the improved services you might expect.
Image source, ReutersThere has been plenty of speculation in recent weeks over exactly what Labour plans to do with the Budget.
Some changes have already been shared publicly, however - here they are at a glance:
Winter fuel payments: The government has said future payments will only be made to those getting pension credit or other means-tested help. The plans have been criticised by some MPs, unions and charities.
State pension: The state pension is set to rise by 4.1% in April 2025. The increase will be confirmed around the time of the Budget.
VAT on private schools: The government has said VAT will be added to private school fees from 1 January. Some private schools will lose business rates relief.
Energy windfall tax: The government is increasing the windfall tax on the profits oil and gas firms make in the UK. The energy profits levy is due to rise to 38% from 35% on 1 November and will remain in place until 31 March 2030.
Bus fare cap: The single bus fare cap applied to many routes in England will be raised to £3. It is an increase on the current limit of £2, which was introduced under the previous Conservative government and was due to expire in December.
Minimum wage: Minimum wages will rise in April, with hourly rates for over-21s set to go up to £12.21 an hour. Employees aged 18 to 20 and apprentices will also see their minimum hourly pay increase.
Even though the Budget statement happens annually, we have already had one this year.
This was delivered by the previous Conservative Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, in March 2024, before the general election.
But because Labour won in July the now-chancellor, Rachel Reeves, can set out her own Budget that focuses on the new government's financial priorities.
The parties set out their priorities at election time in their manifestos - a series of promises and pledges that spell out what they plan to do if they win power. That means this Budget will be closely watched for how the financial measures in that document translate into the realities of being in government.
Michael Race
Business reporter, BBC News
Image source, Getty ImagesChancellor Rachel Reeves has confirmed ahead of the budget that minimum wages will rise in April, with hourly rates for over-21s set to go up to £12.21 an hour.
She says the pay boost marks a "significant step" towards achieving Labour's promise of a "genuine living wage" for workers.
Employees aged 18 to 20 and apprentices will also see their minimum hourly pay increase.
The government says more than three million workers will benefit, but firms warn the higher cost could mean they have to cut back on hiring.
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A number of the papers carry previews of what to expect in today’s Budget.
The i reports the news - confirmed yesterday - that Chancellor Rachel Reeves will raise the minimum wage by 6.7% from April next year, though adds that millions will be hit by further freezes to income tax thresholds as well as hikes to capital gains tax and employers' National Insurance.
The Guardian says Reeves will deliver “what is expected to be the biggest tax-raising budget in history" but she believes "she can spare working people from the tax increases intended to plug the hole in the public finances".
The Daily Telegraph says it understands the armed forces are set to receive a £3bn funding boost, meaning the proportion of GDP spent on the military will remain roughly stable at 2.3%. It says the move will "end fears that defence will bear the brunt” of spending cuts and will be “welcomed by military chiefs".
And the Financial Times says that, on the eve of the Budget, the cost of the government's long-term borrowing hit its highest level since the election. The paper says investors have “braced themselves” because Reeves plans to fund new investment by relaxing the government's fiscal rules and increasing borrowing by more than £20bn a year.
Faisal Islam
Economics editor
Image source, EPAMany workers and businesses will be keen to know how today's Budget will affect them
There is no special Budget red box commissioned for Rachel Reeves when, mid-morning on Wednesday, she becomes the first woman to brandish one outside No 11 Downing Street.
There will be no such frills, few jokes and don’t expect a big rabbit out of the hat.
The number crunchers, bean counters, and abacus economists, so derided by Liz Truss, have taken back control. In that reused red box will be a boffin’s Budget.
Indeed, it could be defined by being the polar opposite of everything in Truss and her chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s infamous mini-Budget two years ago.
This time the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has carried out its full 10-week, back-and-forth audit of both the public finances and all the tax and spend policy measures Reeves is planning, adding to what has felt like a drawn-out timetable of pre-Budget preparation.
Each year, the chancellor of the exchequer - who is in charge of the government's finances - makes a Budget statement in the House of Commons.
This outlines the government's plans for raising or lowering taxes and sets out its spending commitments for health, schools, police and other public services.
We can also expect a report to be published by the Treasury alongside the Budget, which sets out further details about the measures and what they will cost.
The independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) - which monitors government spending - will also assess the plans.
Emily Atkinson
Live page editor
Image source, TreasuryLike us, Rachel Reeves was up late into the night preparing for the Budget
Things have changed a lot since the last Budget in March.
First of all, there’s a whole new government and chancellor.
And there are positive signs that the economy is in a better place: inflation is coming down, a further cut to interest rates is widely expected, and growth forecasts are increasingly upbeat.
Rachel Reeves' assessment isn’t quite so rosy. She’s claiming Labour inherited the "worst set of circumstances since the Second World War" following 14 years of Conservative rule.
Against that backdrop, the pitch from the chancellor today will be two-fold:
But how might this be achieved?
Reeves is warning of “difficult decisions” and government sources say she’s looking to make tax rises and spending cuts to the value of £40bn.
We’re still light on detail, but all will become clear when the chancellor delivers the Budget to MPs at 12:30 GMT.
We'll be covering the whole thing here - settle in and stay tuned.