From lower energy bills and frozen rail fares to higher wages and a State Pension boost, ministers say the steps are designed to reduce everyday costs and raise living standards.

Here’s what’s changing and how it could affect you.

1. £150 off energy bills from April

Households will see an average of £150 taken off energy bills from April, following confirmation from energy regulator Ofgem that the energy price cap will fall by 7%.

The cap limits the amount customers on standard variable tariffs pay per unit of gas and electricity.

The discount will be automatically applied from 1 April, including for customers on fixed tariffs. The exact saving will depend on usage and tariff type.

This comes on top of the Warm Home Discount Scheme, which provides a one-off £150 discount on electricity bills — meaning some eligible households could benefit from support worth £300 in total.

2. Pay rise for 2.7 million workers

Around 2.7 million workers will receive a 4% pay rise from April as both the National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage increase.

Full-time workers on the National Living Wage will see an estimated £900 boost per year.

Full-time workers aged 18–20 on the lower rate will see a rise of around £1,500 annually.

The increase is part of wider efforts to lift incomes for low-paid workers.

3. Rail fares frozen

For the first time in 30 years, regulated rail fare increases across England and parts of Wales have been capped for 2026.

The freeze covers season tickets, peak and off-peak regulated fares, benefitting more than a billion passenger journeys.

A commuter travelling three days a week using flexi-season tickets between Milton Keynes and London, for example, could save around £315 per year.

4. Prescription charges held under £10

Prescription charges in England will remain under £10 in 2026.

Prepayment Certificates and existing exemptions remain unchanged, ensuring essential medicines stay affordable and helping prevent people from skipping treatment due to cost.

5. State Pension rising by 4.8%

From April 2026, the New State Pension will increase by 4.8%.

The full New State Pension will rise to £241.30 per week, or £12,547.60 per year, delivering above-inflation support for millions of pensioners.

The third reading of the Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit) Bill moves us closer to tackling child poverty

It’s an investment in our country’s future – giving more children the best start in life

We are delivering the biggest cut to child poverty in a generation pic.twitter.com/9bgt69f0Aa

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— Department for Work and Pensions (@DWPgovuk) February 24, 2026

6. Universal Credit two-child limit removed

From April 2026, the two-child limit on Universal Credit will be scrapped, allowing families to receive support for all children regardless of family size.

The change is expected to lift around 450,000 children out of poverty.

Universal Credit is administered by the Department for Work and Pensions.

7. Up to 30 hours of funded childcare

Eligible working parents in England can access up to 30 hours a week of government-funded childcare for 38 weeks per year for children aged nine months up to school age.

The support can save families up to £7,500 per year, helping parents balance work and childcare costs.

Recommended reading:

8. Free breakfast clubs rolling out

Free breakfast clubs are being introduced in every primary school in England.

Since April 2025, 5 million meals have already been delivered through early adopter schemes. The 30-minute sessions aim to improve attendance and attainment while supporting working parents.

The government estimates breakfast clubs could put up to £450 a year back into parents’ pockets.

In response to the strikes, Iran has launched retaliatory missile and drone attacks across the region, with explosions reported in Israel and Gulf states. Airspace has been closed in multiple countries, including Iran, Iraq, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, causing widespread disruption to international flights.

Thousands of Brits are thought to be stranded in the Middle East after US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran

A travel expert has issued three words of crucial advice for people stranded in the Middle East following US and Israeli air strikes on Iran. Simon Calder made the remarks after hundreds of thousands of travellers found themselves stuck in destinations such as Qatar and Abu Dhabi in the wake of the attacks.

Numerous airlines, including British Airways, Emirates, and Qatar Airways, grounded flights following Iranian retaliatory strikes throughout the region. When flights will resume normal service remains unclear, with thousands of Britons believed to be stranded.

Speaking on Radio 5 Live, Mr Calder had three key words he urged travellers to follow: “At the moment, the best advice I have for anyone who is stuck in various parts of the world is: just be patient.”

The situation will be resolved – I hope, very much sooner rather than later,” he added. “What we have seen is the extraordinary sight of the big three of Middle Eastern hubs – Dubai International, Doha, and Abu Dhabi – all closing because of the retaliatory strikes from Iran. We have never seen that. The last thing of this scale we saw in this area like that here was the Covid pandemic.

READ MORE: Travel expert Simon Calder predicts when BA, Etihad and Emirates flights will resume after Iran attackREAD MORE: Nationwide customers’ three steps needed to qualify for free £100 payout

“Consider this. More than a quarter of a million passengers were due (on Saturday) to fly to and through Dubai International Airport alone. It is bigger than Heathrow Airport, handles more passengers, and everyone is desperate to get where they need to be.

“I have been speaking to people who were about to take off, they had the ‘boarding complete’ announcement, and suddenly the captain said, ‘Sorry, airspace closed, we are staying here’. It took them three hours to get off the aircraft because they all had to be processed through immigration, leaving them in a place where they really didn’t want to be. Many of them were just off a previous flight a few hours before and were waiting to travel on to their final destination of London Heathrow.”

It was subsequently confirmed that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the strikes, casting serious doubt over the future of the Islamic Republic. The death of Mr Khamenei, following decades in power, has triggered furious scenes across other parts of the Middle East and beyond, heightening the threat of potential regional instability.

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Dubai International ranks as the world’s busiest airport, processing roughly 250,000 passengers daily. Doha Airport in Qatar handles approximately 150,000 travellers each day, meaning enormous travel chaos as both airports continue to be affected.

Doha holds particular significance for British passengers flying to and from the Middle East, Asia and the UK. Mr Calder went on to say: “Some people are in the difficult position of being stranded on the wrong side, and they are trying to get back to the UK but finding that air passenger rights rules – which are great when you are flying from Europe – don’t work the same way when you are flying to Europe on a non-UK or non-EU airline.

“They can basically just say, ‘well, good luck, we’ll try and get you there in a week or you can take a refund’. It’s really, really difficult Airlines like Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways, they are not legally obliged to find hotel accommodation for all these stranded passengers and get them back as soon as possible but hopefully they will do so.

“The other problem for people whose flights have been cancelled, when flights resume, they go to the back of the queue. If flights resume on Monday, anybody who has a flight booked on Monday will fly on Monday, and people whose flights were cancelled over the weekend – and we are talking hundreds of thousands now – they are going to be finding that they are at the back of the queue, scrabbling for whatever available seats there are.”

LONDON (AP) — The attack on Iran by the United States and Israel disrupted flights across the Middle East and beyond Saturday as countries around the region closed their airspace and key airports that connect Europe, Africa and the West to Asia were directly hit by strikes.

Airports across the Middle East remained closed Sunday as the conflict moved into its second day. Emirates Airlines suspended all flights to and from Dubai until at least Sunday afternoon. The Qatar airport was closed until at least Monday morning, according to Qatar Airways. Israeli airspace also remained closed Sunday.

The closures have stranded tens of thousands of travelers around the world.

Hundreds of thousands of travelers were either stranded or diverted to other airports Saturday after Israel, Qatar, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait and Bahrain closed their airspace. There also was no flight activity over the United Arab Emirates, flight tracking website FlightRadar24 said, after the government there announced a “temporary and partial closure” of its airspace.

That led to the closure of key hub airports in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha, and the cancellation of more than 1,800 flights by major Middle Eastern airlines. The three major airlines that operate at those airports — Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad — typically have about 90,000 passengers per day crossing through those hubs and even more travelers headed to destinations in the Middle East, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.

Two airports in the United Arab Emirates reported incidents as the government there condemned what it called a “blatant attack involving Iranian ballistic missiles” on Saturday.

Officials at Dubai International Airport — the largest in the United Arab Emirates and one of the busiest in the world — said four people were injured, while Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi said that one person was killed and seven others were injured in a drone strike. Strikes were also reported at Kuwait International Airport.

Though Iran did not publicly claim responsibility, the scope of retaliatory strikes that Gulf nations attributed to Iran extended beyond the American bases that it previously said it would target.

“For travelers, there’s no way to sugarcoat this,” said Henry Harteveldt, an airline industry analyst and president of Atmosphere Research Group. “You should prepare for delays or cancellations for the next few days as these attacks evolve and hopefully end.”

But it is unclear how long the disruption to flight operations could last. For comparison, the Israeli and U.S. attack on Iran in June 2025 lasted 12 days.

‘No one knows’

The situation was changing quickly and airlines urged passengers to check their flight status online before heading to the airport.

Some airlines issued waivers to affected travelers that will allow them to rebook their flight plans without paying extra fees or higher fares.

Jonathan Escott and his fiance had arrived at the airport in Newcastle, England, on Saturday only to find out that his direct flight to Dubai on Emirates airline was canceled, leaving everyone on the flight stuck there.

Escott left to go back to where he was staying with family, about an hour from the airport, but has no idea when he may be able to travel.

“No one knows,” Escott said. “No one really knows what’s going on with the conflict, really. Not Emirates, Emirates don’t have a clue. No one has a clue.”

At least 145 planes that were en route to cities like Tel Aviv and Dubai early Saturday were diverted to airports in cities like Athens, Istanbul or Rome, according to FlightAware. Others turned around and returned to where they took off from. One plane spent nearly 15 hours in the air after leaving Philadelphia and getting all the way to Spain before turning around and returning to where it started.

Numerous airlines canceled international flights to Dubai through the weekend, as India’s civil aviation agency designated much of the Middle East — including skies above Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon — as a high-security risk zone at all altitudes.

Air India canceled all flights to Mideast destinations. Turkish Airlines said flights to Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Jordan were suspended until Monday and flights to Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Oman were suspended.

The airline said additional cancellations may be announced, and many other airlines were suspending flights into the region through the weekend.

Travelers advised to be ‘very creative’

U.S.-based Delta Air Lines and United Airlines suspended flights to Tel Aviv at least through the weekend. Dutch airline KLM had already announced earlier in the week that it was suspending flights to and from Tel Aviv.

Airlines including Lufthansa, Air France, Transavia and Pegasus canceled all flights to Lebanon, while American Airlines suspended flights from Philadelphia to Doha.

Virgin Atlantic said it would avoid flying over Iraq, meaning flights to and from India, the Maldives and Riyadh could take slightly longer. The airline already was not flying over Iran and said all flights would carry appropriate fuel in case they need to reroute on short notice.

British Airways said flights to Tel Aviv and Bahrain will be suspended until next week, and flights to Amman, Jordan, were canceled Saturday.

“Travelers should anticipate that there will be a lot of disruptions,” Harteveldt said. “To be honest, if you haven’t left home, chances are you won’t be leaving home if you’re supposed to travel to or through these destinations for at least several days, if not longer. And if you are returning home, you will have to be very creative about how you get home.”

___

Levy reported from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Funk reported from Omaha, Nebraska. Associated Press writers Adam Schreck in Bangkok, Sam Metz in Ramallah, West Bank, and Melanie Lidman in Jerusalem contributed.

All you need to know about the Old Firm derby at Ibrox including Sky Sports TV coverage, kick-off time and team news

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The third Old Firm derby of the campaign arrives with the stakes clear: defeat could effectively end either side’s title challenge.

Whilst that scenario isn’t unprecedented, the prospect of the victors still trailing another club marks genuinely new ground.

Hearts stand to benefit most from proceedings in Govan, particularly should the match finish level. The Jambos now sit seven points clear following their victory over Aberdeen on Saturday.

Both Glasgow giants faltered after playing subsequent to Hearts last weekend, and a stalemate would serve neither particularly well.

Martin O’Neill restored a measure of Celtic pride with the midweek triumph over Stuttgart, despite elimination from the Europa League.

Danny Rohl can draw encouragement from Rangers’ January victory at Celtic Park, though this time he faces an experienced operator of these fixtures in the opposing technical area rather than the inexperienced Wilfried Nancy.

When is Rangers vs Celtic?

The fixture takes place on Sunday 1 March, with a 12pm kick-off.

Is the game on TV?

Yes, Sky Sports Football will broadcast the match live, with coverage commencing at 11am.

Can I live stream Rangers vs Celtic?

Yes, Sky Sports subscribers can stream the fixture to their devices through the Sky Go app. NOW TV subscribers can access similar coverage via the NOW TV app.

Rangers TV international subscribers can also watch the match live at no extra cost.

What is the Rangers v Celtic team news?

Rangers have doubts over Dujon Sterling and Ryan Naderi. Andreas Skov Olsen is expected to start despite being taken off at half-time in the draw at Livingston.

Celtic’s big decision comes between the sticks, with under-pressure goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel dropped from the victory in Stuttgart in midweek and replaced by Viljami Sinisalo. Auston Trusty is suspended, while Luke McCowan could start.

The world’s autocrats, from Vladimir Putin to Xi Jinping, will surely be sleeping a little less easy after the death of Iran’s supreme leader in an operation backed by Donald Trump.

But the US decision to go to war with Iran without any attempt to gain international consensus – or even the endorsement of Congress – sets a dangerous precedent for the unilateral use of force to achieve foreign policy goals, which could make the whole planet a lot less safe.

Iran latest: Supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei is dead

None of America’s Western allies, including the UK, will mourn the demise of Ali Khamenei, 86, who was killed by Israeli airstrikes against his compound in Tehran on Saturday at the start of a blitz of missiles and drones launched by the US and Israel.

Yet the move – which comes less than two months after US forces launched a deadly raid into Venezuela to capture its strongman ruler – further reduces the threshold for any country to deem it acceptable to lob bombs against another sovereign state to resolve a dispute.

“We are in an era of great power politics and this is what it looks like,” Rob Johnson, the head of the Changing Character of War Centre at Oxford University, told me.

The consequences of Mr Trump’s Iran gamble are still playing out.

But three things are already very clear.

Firstly, this intervention – especially as it will most likely not be condemned by the UK and other NATO allies, given they hate the Iranian regime almost as much as the US – will make it a lot harder for the West to criticise the legitimacy of similar attacks launched by their opponents.

For example, Mr Putin can now brush off as double standards the fiery condemnation by Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz of his full-scale invasion of Ukraine even though there was no justification for the Russian attack against Volodymyr Zelensky’s government – in contrast to the demonstrable threat posed by the Iranian regime to its own people and the wider region.

President Xi of China will also be watching events in the Middle East closely and most likely drawing the conclusion that he now has a far freer hand to capture Taiwan by force.

At the same time, a second certainty that world leaders will understand with renewed clarity is the importance of military strength to shore up their survival.

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Trump’s attack on Iran: Is this ‘America first’?

This is especially true for those who seek to defy whoever has the strongest armed forces – which for now at least is the US under Mr Trump.

It sets the stage for even greater militarisation of the world’s most powerful countries and the need for smaller and middling powers to club ever closer together – an observation made by Mr Merz at a major security conference in Munich last month.

Finally, and perhaps most profoundly, is the undeniable unravelling of a set of international rules that evolved from the ashes of the Second World War and are upheld by the United Nations to protect the sovereignty of all countries and the dignity of all people.

With Mr Trump establishing his own so-called “Board of Peace” to rival the UN, the old world order that has existed for decades has never seemed so challenged.

As for what comes next in Iran, it is very hard to predict.

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How the Iran attacks unfolded

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The regime is reeling from the loss of its leader and has vowed its largest ever retaliation, though Mr Trump says the response so far – with Iranian missiles and drones fired against Israel as well as Gulf states where US forces are based – is weaker than anticipated.

The US president, who likes the simplicity of bold statements, is already able to portray the mission as having achieved success following the killing of Khamenei.

Read more:
How have Iranians reacted to death of supreme leader?
One dead and others injured at Abu Dhabi and Dubai airports

But Iran’s fate is not a short, self-contained, made-for-social-media news story.

As history shows, there is huge peril in any foreign intervention and the consequences of the United States decapitating the Iranian regime will only truly be understood over time.

The top airline has issued a crucial update for travellers on the unfolding situation in the UAE

Thousands of holidaymakers have been left stranded after aviation giant Emirates cancelled all flights in and out of Dubai on Saturday, owing to the escalating situation in Iran and across the Middle East.

The airline issued a “red alert” suspension set to last until at least 3pm local time on Sunday, pointing to a series of regional airspace closures that have rendered the skies effectively off-limits. The carrier is “actively monitoring” the high-stakes situation as authorities race to manage the deepening crisis.

Whilst safety remains the “highest priority,” the move has triggered widespread travel chaos for those caught up in the turmoil.

READ MORE: Belfast anti-war activists holding ‘Stop Bombing Iran’ rallyREAD MORE: Foreign Office warns UK citizens to shelter as flights cancelled after Iran strikes

The update follows confirmation from Iran’s state broadcaster that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed in the early hours of Sunday local time during US and Israeli airstrikes, reports the Express.

Emirates’ announcement comes as airlines operating across the Middle East grounded or rerouted flights en masse on Saturday in the aftermath of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran.

Iran retaliated by launching a series of strikes, targeting Israel and four Gulf Arab nations hosting US military bases — Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Wizz Air were amongst airlines that reduced their flight schedules to Middle Eastern destinations, referencing safety considerations.

The UK Foreign Office instructed British citizens in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to seek immediate shelter following explosions.

Emirates full statement on flights to and from Dubai

Due to multiple regional airspace closures, Emirates has temporarily suspended all operations to and from Dubai, up until 3pm UAE time on Sunday, 1 March.

If you are booked to travel in the next 72 hours, your options are:.

– Rebook on an alternate flight. You can rebook on another flight to your intended destination up to 10 days from your original date of travel.

If you booked your flight with a travel agent, please contact them. If you booked with us directly, contact us.

– Request for refund. You can request for a refund of your ticket by completing the refund form if you booked with us directly.

If you booked your flights with a travel agent, please contact them.

We urge all customers to check flight status before proceeding to the airport.

Customers impacted by flight cancellations must contact their travel agency for rebooking. If booked directly with Emirates, please contact us.

Customers are requested to ensure their contact details are correct by visiting http://emirat.es/managebooking to receive updates We are actively monitoring the situation and engaging with relevant authorities. We apologise to customers affected by disruptions for any inconvenience caused.

The safety and security of our passengers and crew remain our highest priority.

UK Foreign Office issues advice for Britons trapped in Dubai

For any Britons currently in the UAE, the Foreign Office released fresh guidance overnight.

Those already in the UAE are being urged to register their presence with the UK government in order to receive further updates as events continue to develop across the Middle East.

“Due to reported missile attacks, British nationals in the UAE should immediately shelter in place. Remain indoors in a secure location, avoid all travel and follow instructions from the local authorities.”

The FCDO further advised that British nationals in the UAE should take sensible precautions, taking into account their own personal circumstances.

– Read the UK Government’s fact sheet If you’re affected by a crisis abroad. This includes guidance on how to prepare for a crisis with suggestions on what you might include in your emergency supplies and what to do in a crisis.

– Follow advice from the local authorities and sign up to receive information and alerts. Read the FDCO fact sheet: National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority’s guidance across numerous emergencies.

– Sign up to FCDO Travel Advice to get email notifications on updates as they happen.

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Giving the first UK Government response to Mr Khamenei’s death, Mr Healey told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I think few people will mourn the Ayatollah’s death, not least the family and friends of those thousands of young protesters murdered on the streets of Iranian cities.

A fresh wave of explosions has been heard in Dubai for a second day as Iran continues its strikes on the Gulf in response to US and Israeli attacks.

Witnesses said that blasts had been heard in Dubai and the Qatari capital Doha on Sunday, with authorities saying the sounds were the result of successful interception operations.

Thick black plumes of smoke continued to rise from the Jebel Ali port area, where one of the berths caught fire earlier on Sunday because of debris from an aerial interception of a missile.

Two people were also injured in Dubai after shrapnel from drones fell on two houses when they were intercepted, a Dubai Media Office statement said.

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Iran has said that it would target US bases in the region, but it has hit a range of other targets across Gulf cities.

Dubai’s international airport, its landmark Burj Al Arab hotel, and man-made Palm Jumeirah Island have all suffered damage.

The Dubai Media Office said in a statement on Sunday morning: “Authorities confirmed that debris from drones intercepted by air defences fell in the courtyards of two homes in Dubai, resulting in two injuries.

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“The injured have received the necessary medical care. Authorities also clarified that the sounds heard across the emirate were the result of successful interception operations”.

Debris from a drone ignited a fire at Dubai’s iconic Burj Al Arab hotel on Saturday. Authorities said the fire had been limited to the hotel’s outer facade and that no injuries were reported.

Four people were injured after an incident at Dubai International Airport and the terminals were cleared of passengers.

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UK ambassador to the UAE, Edward Hobart, told British nationals to shelter in place on Sunday. In a video posted to social media on Sunday morning, he acknowledged: “I know many of you will have had disturbed nights, woken up to noises and alerts. It’s been a really difficult 24 hours. There’s been hundred of missile and drone attacks over Abu Dhabi and Dubai which have been intercepted”.

Mr Hobart added that he was very grateful for the “swift actions” of the UAE defence forces.

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Israel said that it had launched another wave of attacks on Iran on Sunday, while US president Donald Trump warned of consequences for retaliation.

Mr Trump warned in a post on Truth Social that Iran “better not” attack further on Sunday, saying: “If they do, we will hit them with a force that has never been seen before!”

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an air strike yesterday, Iranian state media confirmed. Iran’s top security official, Ali Larijani, said a temporary leadership council would be set up.

Air raid sirens sounded repeatedly across Israel early on Sunday, with a series of explosions heard in Tel Aviv as Israel’s sophisticated air defence system sought to intercept the latest Iranian offensive.

Reporting contributed from Reuters.