Here are the biggest changes that will come into effect for the UK in 2025
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With 2025 comes the Labour government’s first shot at a full calendar year in power – and plans are already in place for it. There’s still a long way to go until the next scheduled general election, but Sir Keir Starmer is itching to get some tangible changes under his belt.
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After all, the next round of local elections is coming up on May 1, and the PM would surely like his candidates to have something positive to point towards. While plenty of surprises will certainly come this year, here are a few of the things the government has told us to expect throughout this year.
![[BATH, UNITED KINGDOM - SEPTEMBER 29: Vapes and vaping products are displayed on sale in a shop on September 29, 2024 in Bath, England. Often seen as a healthy alternative to tobacco, the number of people vaping in the UK continues to rise. However new research suggests that vaping could be as bad as smoking and that many of the products deliberately target children. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SEI_230990171-0753.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
Louise Haigh may have departed as transport secretary in November, but her biggest idea will only start to play out in spring. Under her nationalisation plan, the government will save on money by only taking on rail franchises when their private contracts run out.
By that token, the first operator to come under the new Great British Railways umbrella will be South Western, which is based at London Waterloo. After it is brought into government ownership in May, c2c – which serves Essex and London – will follow in July.
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Greater Anglia, which covers much of the east of England, is expected to be nationalised at some point in autumn. The banning of disposable vapes was first announced in January 2024 by the previous Conservative government. But those proposals were shelved when the general election was called in May, so it’s Labour who will have the responsibility for carrying it out.
![[Kim Leadbeater, MP for Spen Valley, reacts during a demonstration in support of assisted dying outside the British parliament after lawmakers voted in favour of the assisted dying law, in London, Britain, November 29, 2024. REUTERS/Mina Kim]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SEI_231349188-f476.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
