How to relieve worst of Reeves' Budget squeeze

November’s Budget remains a painful memory but the real agony is still to come, with a string of tax hikes hitting Britons in April.

- Edited by HARVEY JONES

Thanks to a combination of the ongoing freeze on income tax thresholds, and measures introduced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves last month, taxpayers will find themselves paying extra in five different ways.

They may even hand over more to HMRC even if they aren't earning a penny extra, said Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown: "The good news is that you can fight these tax hikes, and getting started early will give you the best possible chance of avoiding some of the pain that 2026 holds in store."

The biggest stealth raid is on pay, Coles said. Income tax and National Insurance thresholds will be frozen every year until 2031, pushing more people into higher tax bands every year as pay and the state pension rises.