In 2025, England will see the introduction of 13 new laws affecting everything from tax and National Insurance to pensions and beyond. As we usher in the New Year post-Christmas, UK households are being encouraged to familiarise themselves with the upcoming changes that will impact their daily lives.
These new laws will touch on areas such as tax, pensions, parental leave, junk food advertising on TV, smoking, and more. On a positive note, workers in Birmingham and the West Midlands can look forward to an increase in the minimum wage. However, prepare to shell out more for a variety of things. To keep you informed, we’ve compiled a summary here.
Changes to the rules for non-domiciled individuals will take effect from April, fulfilling one of the party’s key election campaign promises. Currently, these ‘non-doms’ only pay UK tax on income earned within the country, with an estimated 37,000 exploiting this loophole.
Employer national insurance contributions (NICs) will rise by 1.2 points, from 13.8% to 15%. This tax is paid by employers on top of their employees’ wages, reports Birmingham Live. The chancellor also confirmed that Labour will lower the earnings threshold at which employers start paying this levy from £9,100 to £5,000.
The government has maintained that the measure is not a tax on working people, despite some economists suggesting that the additional cost for employers will inevitably lead to slower wage growth in the near future. The Treasury predicts that this change will generate a net £19 billion in its first year.
In terms of renters, the ban on Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions is being implemented, fulfilling a promise initially made by the Conservatives in 2017. This legislation currently allows landlords to evict rental tenants with two months notice without needing to provide any reason.
It has been widely criticised by campaigners due to the lack of security it provides for renters. Regarding wages, the national minimum wage increase will take effect on 1 April 2025. The national living wage will rise by £0.77 to £12.21.
For those aged 18-20, the minimum wage will increase by £1.40 to £10.00 an hour, and for 16-17 year olds, it will increase by £1.15 to £7.55 an hour. These increases meet the government’s set remit, and the national living wage rate is expected to reach the highest real value in the history of the UK’s minimum wage.
The increase in the 18-20 year old rate narrows the gap between that and the national living wage, in anticipation of the adult rate being extended to 18 year olds in the future. .
Parental leave and sick pay are also areas of focus.
Statutory payments, which are legal entitlements given to employees under certain circumstances such as illness, maternity, paternity, or bereavement, will see an increase in rates from April 2025 in the UK. The statutory sick pay (SSP) will rise from £116.75 to £118.75 per week, with a qualifying threshold of £125 per week.
Although the proposed Employment Rights Bill could make sick pay payable from the first day of illness, this is unlikely to be in effect by next April. Other statutory payments including maternity pay, maternity allowance, adoption pay, paternity pay, shared parental pay and parental bereavement pay will increase from £184.03 to £187.18 per week.
On 13 November 2024, the government announced that it will introduce a new Pensions Scheme Bill in 2025. This includes measures such as automatic consolidation of small deferred pension pots, a value-for-money framework for defined contribution (DC) schemes, and a requirement for occupational DC schemes to offer tailored retirement income solutions.
The Bill also introduces commercial defined benefit (DB) superfunds to enhance financial security for members. .
These reforms are part of the government’s ongoing pensions review, aimed at boosting investment, growing pension pots, and tackling inefficiencies. While significant changes to automatic enrolment are not expected soon, the second phase of the review in late 2024 will explore contribution levels and retirement adequacy.
The current systems for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and the new Additional Learning Needs (ALN) will run concurrently until September 2025, when the latter will be fully implemented. The ALN system is designed to support Welsh children and young people from birth up to 25 years old who have ALN, which is estimated to affect one in five school-aged children.
The ALN Act introduces a unified legislative framework for supporting individuals within this age range who have ALN.
In an effort to combat childhood obesity and related health issues, the government has announced a ban on junk food advertising targeted at children. With statistics showing that one in ten children in reception are obese and one in five by age 5 suffer from tooth decay, the move aims to reduce the influence of unhealthy food adverts on young people’s eating habits.
The government stated: “That’s why we’re taking steps to stop the targeting of junk food ads at kids from October 2025 which we estimate will prevent around 20,000 cases of childhood obesity. This change will help to ensure our children get the best and healthiest start in life.”
Additionally, there are plans to introduce a single-use vape ban and a comprehensive tobacco and vapes bill.
Health, waste and enforcement organisations have applauded the Government’s decision to ban the sale of disposable vapes from 1st June next year. Groups such as Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), Material Focus and the Chartered Trading Standards Institute have been vocal about their concerns regarding the environmental impact of these single-use products and their potential role in the rise of teen vaping.
While today’s confirmed ban is unlikely to fully address these issues on its own, it is a positive sign of the Government’s commitment to tackling problems within the vaping market. Public support for this measure is strong, with 77% backing the ban.
From 1st April 2025, electric vehicle (EV) drivers will start receiving their first tax bills through Vehicle Excise Duty (commonly referred to as ‘road tax’), as their current exemption from this tax comes to an end. This policy was introduced by former Tory chancellor Jeremy Hunt.
EVs registered after the introduction of this tax will be subject to a lower first-year rate of £10, while those registered prior to this will face the standard annual rate of £190. The exemption that EVs currently enjoy from the Expensive Car Supplement is also set to end, meaning owners of cars worth more than £40,000 will need to pay an additional £410 per year for the first five years of ownership.
The railways are being nationalised.
Labour plans to renationalise three rail operators next year, but this move is not expected to result in lower fares for passengers. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander acknowledged the importance of “affordability is really important to people” but noted that people are “willing to pay for a good service”.
This comes as the government confirmed the renationalisation of South Western Railway in May 2025, C2C in July 2025, and Greater Anglia in autumn 2025, following Labour’s passing of a law permitting such action. From January, changes to the leasehold system will eliminate the two-year ownership requirement for qualifying for a lease extension for a flat or buying the freehold of a leasehold house.
From spring, access to Right to Manage (RTM) will be expanded, allowing more leaseholders in mixed-use buildings to take over management from their freeholders. In most cases, leaseholders pursuing RTM will no longer have to cover their freeholder’s costs.
The European Union has once again delayed the launch of its new travel authorisation system, ETIAS, now set to be introduced in 2025. The EU Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) was initially planned for a 2020 launch, with subsequent delays pushing it back to 2022, 2023, and 2024.
From 2025, travellers heading to Europe will need to secure an approved ETIAS online before setting off. Given that Europe sees over 37 million visitors annually, this change is likely to significantly affect travel plans worldwide.