Rubbish Check
Daily Mail Money · 28 October 2026
source“Savers and landlords hammered with income tax raid in Budget as Healey ratchets up Reeves’ hike by another 2%”
R4/ 10
Selective
Rubbish Rating — 1 = base fact, 10 = pure rubbish
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In short
Rubbish Talk rates the Daily Mail's claim that savers and landlords are being "hammered" by Chancellor John Healey's Budget a 4/10 because the 2-point tax rise is real and correctly quoted, but the headline's dramatic language obscures that only taxpayers who breach their Personal Savings Allowance are affected, and that the government reversed a separate cash ISA cut in the same Budget.
The Verdict
Selective. The underlying number, a further 2-point rise in tax on savings and property income stacking on top of last year's 2-point rise, is accurate and correctly sourced to the Budget documents. But "hammered" and "raid" flatten a picture where the real cash impact on typical savers is a few pounds a year, where 16% of taxpayers are affected and half the revenue comes from the wealthiest 10%, and where Healey simultaneously reversed a cut to the cash ISA allowance that would have squeezed savers further.
What actually happened
Chancellor John Healey's Budget raised the basic, higher and additional rates of tax on savings interest and rental income by a further 2 percentage points from April 2027, to 24%, 44% and 49% respectively, stacking on an identical 2-point rise already announced by Rachel Reeves in the prior year's Budget. This matches external reporting: one outlet confirmed the increase will take the basic, higher and additional rates of tax on property income to 24%, 44% and 49% respectively, adding to the rises announced in last year's Budget. In the same package, Healey reversed Reeves' planned cut to the cash ISA allowance, keeping it at £20,000 rather than letting it fall to £12,000 for under-65s.
Key facts
- Savings/property tax rates rise from 20/40/45% to 24/44/49% (basic/higher/additional) from April 2027, per Budget documents and corroborated externally.
- The rise is cumulative: 2 points from Reeves (Nov 2025) plus 2 points from Healey (Oct 2026).
- Government's own forecast: 16% of income tax payers affected; half the revenue comes from the wealthiest 10% of households.
- Projected revenue: £455m from landlords, £590m from savers by 2031-32.
- Cash ISA allowance cut (to £12,000) was reversed, kept at £20,000 for under-65s.
- Example cited: a basic-rate landlord with £12,000 rental profit sees their annual tax bill rise from £2,400 to £2,880, a £480 increase; a saver with £300 of taxable interest pays an extra £12 a year.
What to watch for
- Whether the OBR's warning that the change could cause "a steady rise in rents" materialises, which would shift the real-world cost from landlords onto tenants.
- Follow-up coverage of the 16%-affected / 10%-wealthiest split, which other outlets may foreground more than the Mail does.
- Whether landlords respond by raising rents, selling up, or absorbing the hit, since the OBR's own forecast flagged a material reduction in returns.
About this scoreThe R-Score is Rubbish Talk's editorial opinion on how far a headline's framing sits from what the underlying facts support. It is a judgement about presentation and emphasis, not an allegation that any outlet has acted dishonestly. Every figure we rely on is linked under Receipts so you can check it yourself.
