John Healey, the UK chancellor, will suspend import tariffs on more than 100 products including marmalade and gherkins in Wednesday's Budget, a move the government claims could save households up to £21 per year when combined with existing tariff suspensions on pasta, fruit juice and tuna.
Marmalade faces a 20% tariff plus an additional £19 charge per 100kg imported. Both will be suspended.
The tariff removals form part of a broader package Healey calls "everyday fixes". Other measures announced include making permanent a 55p per mile tax-free mileage rate for those driving up to 10,000 miles for work, with rates rising to 35p per mile above that threshold. The government will also replace a cliff-edge mechanism for carer's allowance recipients with a tapered earnings limit, allowing carers to earn more without losing their entire payment.
Self-employed fathers will receive two weeks of paternity pay for the first time, worth up to £194 per week. The government plans to roll out hundreds of additional Post Office drop boxes and will freeze fuel duty again, with a 5p duty discount continuing. That discount was introduced in 2022 as a temporary 12-month measure but has been extended repeatedly since then.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham framed the changes as addressing "everyday problems that cost people money or simply aren't fair", naming examples including nurses driving for work, parents on paternity leave and unpaid carers.
The Conservative Party attacked the package. Shadow chancellor Andrew Griffith called the tariff removals "cheaper gherkins" and "an insult to families hammered by Labour's tax rises", arguing that the savings have already been wiped out by higher borrowing costs, taxes and inflation.
Healey attributed rising household costs partly to ongoing wars in Iran and Ukraine but said the government could "act where we can make a difference" on matters within its control.