The Spring Budget in a year of a general election will always be closely scrutinized, for this year in particular Jeremy Hunt has a tightrope to walk, appeal to the voters whilst keeping the purse strings tightly pulled at a time when the country has recently returned to recession.
Hunt talked in his budget about the economy having turned a corner on inflation, and to soon have turned the corner on growth. His plans are designed to ensure that the corner is turned quickly and in time for the general election, to ignite growth and opportunities that aren’t currently there.
Here are the key points from the budget:
– Employee national insurance contributions cut by 2p from 6 April
– The higher rate of property capital gains tax reduces to 24%
– VAT threshold increased to £90,000
– Child benefit threshold increases to £60,000
– Household support fund extended to 30 September
– Alcohol duty frozen until February 2025
– Fuel duty frozen for next 12 months, and the “temporary” 5p cut on fuel duty extended
– The furnished holiday lettings regime is abolished
– Stamp duty relief for people buying more than one dwelling is abolished
– Non-dom tax regime breaks abolished to be replaced with a new scheme
– A British ISA introduced which will allow an additional £5,000 annual investment for investments in UK equity with all the tax advantages of other ISAs.
Sign up for our newsletter to be the first to receive our comprehensive breakdown of the budget and what it could mean to you delivered straight to your inbox.