Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Autumn Budget 2024 on trends in the level of household income.

UK living standards, as measured by Real Household Disposable Income (RHDI) per capita, have not grown at the pace many would have hoped for over recent years. If RHDI per capita had grown at the same rate between 2010 and 2023 as it did between 1997 and 2010, people’s incomes would have been over £4,000 higher in 2023.

The 2019-2024 parliament was the worst for living standards growth since ONS records began in the 1950s, with average annual growth of just 0.2%.

In their October 2024 Economic and Fiscal Outlook, the OBR forecast living standards to grow by an annual average of 0.5% over this parliament. This is more than double the pace of living standards growth observed in the 2019-2024 parliament.

GDP per capita, an alternative measure of living standards that captures higher spending on public services, is set to grow even faster, at an annual average of 1.1% over this parliament. This compares to a 0.1% annual average decline in GDP per capita over the 2019-2024 parliament.

Through the growth mission, the government is restoring stability, increasing investment, and reforming the economy to drive up prosperity and living standards across the UK.