Rachel Reeves has announced a package of measures.

She increased the approved mileage rate for personal car use for business trips. This means an increase from the current 45p for cars and vans to 55p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, and 25p for mileage over 10,000 miles. There will be no change to the motorcycle rate.

For hauliers, there will be a 12-month road tax holiday for HGVs, saving the typical heavy lorry up to £912.

To support farmers and the rail freight industry, duty will be cut on red diesel by over a third until the end of this year.

In a bid to tackle soaring profits at oil and gas multinationals as a direct result of the Iran war, the chancellor addressed the use of lower tax jurisdictions.

The chancellor announced a 5% summer VAT rate for children’s meals at restaurants, cafes and hotels, and the wider hospitality sector, over the summer. The discounted VAT rate will kick in from 25 June, when the school holidays start in Scotland and will end on 1 September 2026.

There will also be a discounted 5% VAT rate on children’s tickets to attractions, including theme parks, cinemas, zoos, fairs and soft play.

This will require a very quick change to software to ensure the correct VAT rate is charged and the food served is sold as part of a children’s menu.

The reduced rate applies to the supply of children’s meals where both of the following conditions are met:

• the meal is held out for sale only as a meal for children
• the meal is supplied as part of catering services by a restaurant, café or similar establishment for consumption on the premises.

So, the lower rate will apply to children’s meals, defined as meals served from a children’s menu and marketed, presented and priced as children’s meals.

There is concern that the new 5% rate measures could introduce complications.

As for the ticketed element of the scheme, if a ticket permits repeat entries outside 25 June to 1 September 2026 – such as a season ticket – it will not qualify for the relief unless it is priced the same as a standard single-entry ticket.