In his Spring Statement today, the Chancellor announced his plans to reduce and reform taxes across the United Kingdom – tackling the cost of living and promoting growth.
Gareth was encouraged that today’s announcement signalled the Chancellor’s intention to remain responsible on public spending and public finances whilst helping families with the cost of living.
Measures set out by the Chancellor include reducing and reforming taxes by:
- Slashing fuel duty by 5p for twelve months, delivering a £5 billion tax cut for drivers. Together with the fuel duty freeze, this will save car drivers £100, van drivers £200, and HGV drivers £1,500 this year, coming into effect immediately from 6pm this evening, across the United Kingdom.
- Raising the National Insurance personal threshold from £9,500 to £12,570 from July. This is equivalent to a £6 billion tax cut for nearly 30 million workers and worth over £330 a year starting in July, across the entire United Kingdom. This is the largest single personal tax cut in a decade.
- Helping people keep more of what they earn by cutting the basic rate of income tax to 19 pence in 2024, delivering a tax cut worth £5 billion for over 30 million workers, pensioners and savers – only the second income tax cut in two decades and the first income tax cut for 16 years. This will be worth around £175 for a typical taxpayer.
- Raising the employment allowance to £5,000, delivering a £1,000 tax cut for half a million small businesses.
- Doubling the existing Household Support Fund to £1 billion, delivering an additional £500 million to the Household Support Fund. This helps the most vulnerable families with the cost of living. The fund is distributed through local authorities in England, who have discretion over exactly how the funding is used. This is expected to benefit 3 to 4 million vulnerable households.
In addition to these measures there was welcome news that debt and borrowing are expected to continue falling over the Parliament, while the forecast for unemployment has been revised down by the OBR.
Gareth said: “This is a Spring Statement appropriate to the economic conditions we are experiencing. It cuts taxes for working families and supports people with energy bills, while taking a responsible approach to the public finances.”
