Most analysts expected a two‑year extension. By the time the freeze ends, the thresholds will have been frozen for nine years. At this rate, one wonders if the £12,570 personal allowance will ever rise again. Certainly not in this Parliament.

There was one reprieve for pensioners though. Those who rely solely on the state or basic pension will not have to pay income tax on it.

That spares some of the poorest pensioners the worry of filing a self-assessment tax return, even if they only have a few pounds to pay.

But any retiree with additional income, such as earnings or private pensions, will still pay tax and remain subject to the threshold freeze. So most will see their bills increase, along with everybody else.

Before the Budget, speculation suggested Reeves might halve the annual Cash ISA allowance to just £10,000 from April 2027. For pensioners, that would have been a huge blow, but it didn’t happen.

The Chancellor did slash the Cash ISA allowance to £12,000, but only for those aged under 65. That’s the right thing to do. Most ordinary pensioners don’t want to chance their money in a Stocks and Shares ISA. As ever, the few bits of good news were offset by the bad.

The Chancellor unexpectedly increased basic-rate tax on savings and interest from 20% to 22%.

The personal savings allowance, which lets basic-rate taxpayers earn £1,000 in interest tax-free, remains frozen at its 2016 level. Given today’s higher interest rates, more than 3.5 million savers already pay tax on the interest from a standard savings accounts, outside of the tax-free ISA wrapper.

Soon they will pay that tax at a higher rate.

The 2% rise also hits landlords, affecting older people who bought buy-to-let properties in the glory years, before they became a top Treasury tax target.

Pensioners with shares outside ISAs, often legacy holdings, will pay dividend tax on any income above £500, now at a higher rate as the 2% increase applies there.

Some can escape this by selling the shares and repurchasing them inside an ISA, but may need to spread sales over several years to avoid breaching the £3,000 annual capital gains tax (CGT) exempt amount. They should use their partner’s £3,000 annual CGT amount too, if they have one.

One positive surprise is that inheritance tax rules remain largely unchanged, though the £325,000 nil-rate band and £175,000 main residence band will now be frozen to 2031.

The £325,000 nil-rate band has now been frozen since 2009, massively eroding its value over time. Gifting rules remain unchanged, so older people should use these to help loved ones and reduce a future IHT bill.

Instead, Reeves will target wealth with her new “mansion tax”. This will cost an extra £2,500 a year on £2 million homes, rising to £7,500 on £5million properties. While aimed at the wealthy, it’s inevitable that more families will get caught over time, as those limits remain frozen.

Contributions to workplace pension salary‑sacrifice schemes face a cap of £2,000 from 2029, raising £4.7billion for Reeves. Those affected should maximise contributions before the change takes effect.

Electric vehicle owners will face a new pay-per-mile charge from April 2028, roughly half the fuel duty for petrol drivers, with the likelihood of future increases. At least the 5p cut to fuel duty has been extended to September next year, while rail fares have been frozen for the first time since privatisation in the mid‑1990s. Prescription charges have been frozen too.

In short, pensioners have some small wins, including the full 4.8% state pension triple lock increase, protected Cash ISAs, and no extra tax on state pensioners with no other income sources. But most of this will still be eroded by that income tax freeze.

Working households, savers, landlords, and small investors will all feel the pinch, with higher bills, frozen allowances, and stealthy tax rises combining to stretch finances at a time of already high living costs. Taxpayers should fight back by using all the allowances at their disposal.