End Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions: The Tories’ Renters Reform Bill failed to pass before Labour came to power but the party’s version, the Renters’ Rights Act, is now law seven years after renters were first promised more security.
Keep local housing allowance permanently unfrozen: The Conservatives raised local housing allowance rates in April 2024, enabling housing benefit to cover the bottom 30% of local market rents. But while rents have continued to hit new record-highs, LHA has remained frozen. Recent research from Crisis and Citizens Advice found that just two out of every 100 homes on the market are affordable for low-income renters as a result.
Implement an ambitious target to end street homelessness by 2030: The official rough sleeping count found the number of people on the streets last autumn was at the highest point on record. Labour’s homelessness strategy pledged to half rough sleeping by the end of 2029. Half marks awarded.
Increase universal credit to create an Essentials Guarantee: We asked for £120 a week for a single adult and £200 a week for a couple. Universal credit has increased while Starmer has been in power with single adults entitled to £98.05 a week if they are aged 25 or over and £166.74 a week for a couple.
Health and wellbeing
End the two-child benefit cap: Perhaps the biggest positive change of Starmer’s premiership. The hated cap, which prevented families receiving support for any more than two children, will reportedly lift 450,000 children out of poverty by the final year of parliament.
Reinstate the winter fuel payment (eventually): The contentious decision to cut winter fuel payments for pensioners caused uproar and put the heat on Starmer by his first winter in charge. More than 10 million pensioners faced losing up to £300 a year. A U-turn followed in May 2025, but it was a damaging affair for the prime minister.
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Redesign the personal independence payment/take a fairer, more supportive approach to disability benefits: An ongoing process. Disability benefit cuts proved a controversial issue, dividing Labour MPs. The government has said it will pause reforms until the completion of a review led by Sir Stephen Timms. The initial interim report, published earlier this month, found PIP is “not fit for purpose”.
Universal free school meals: Starmer’s government has expanded free school meals to all children in households receiving universal credit. Coming into force in September, ministers say it will benefit 500,000 pupils, lift 100,000 children out of poverty and save parents an estimated £500 a year.
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Community and Environment
Reinstate Sure Start: Sure Start centres have been praised for giving families in deprived areas a huge boost to health and life chances. But they were one of austerity’s biggest casualties. Labour has rebranded one-stop-shop family hubs as Best Start and is aiming to open 1,000 by 2028.
Devolve greater powers to local authorities to empower locally focused community-based decision-making: The government has made “good progress” towards its devolution aims, the National Audit Office reported earlier this month. Ministers have established 18 mayoral strategic authorities and given access to £15.9 billion in funding between 2025-26 to 2029-30.
Learning and employment
Reform the increasingly punitive benefits system: Spending on working-age sickness and disability benefits has increased by £20bn since the pandemic but Labour’s attempts to cut the bill and drive people into work have been controversial. Those attempts are ongoing.
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Introduce free bus travel in England for those 23 and under: Starmer set a national bus cap of £3 – higher than the £2 Burnham maintained on his Bee Network in Greater Manchester – while the Treasury stumped up £100 million to make bus travel free for kids throughout August as a cost of living measure. There has been no wider national policy on free travel for young people.
Financial and Digital Inclusion
Outlaw high-interest credit: There has been no ban on high-interest credit but the government has announced reforms to make it easier for people to join credit unions which offer lower-cost alternatives to high-cost credit. Ministers plan to raise the cap on locality-based credit unions from three million to 10 million potential members, making it easier for them to grow and merge.
Implement a Digital Inclusion Strategy: The first-ever Digital Inclusion Strategy was published in February 2025, promising to boost skills, access and support to help people engage with the modern digital society. One year on, ministers had launched an £11.9 million Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund and had distributed around 200 refurbished old government devices homelessness charities and other causes.
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