The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, delivered his Spring 2023 Budget in the House of Commons this afternoon. If you found the announcement too much to digest, we\u2019ve put together all of the key information below.<\/p>\n
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The Chancellor says the economy will contract this year but will avoid a technical recession, which is two consecutive quarters of decline.<\/p>\n
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Despite the above, economic growth is expected in the near future: \"After this year the UK economy will grow in every single year of the forecast period: by 1.8% in 2024; 2.5% in 2025; 2.1% in 2026; and 1.9% in 2027.\"<\/p>\n
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The rate of price rises, or inflation, is forecast to fall to 2.9% by the end of 2023, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility.<\/p>\n
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The Energy Price Guarantee will remain at \u00a32,500 for the typical household for the next three months. The Chancellor says this will save the average family a further \u00a3160 on top of support measures already announced.<\/p>\n
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A dozen new Investment Zones are to be created, which will be spread across the West Midlands, Greater Manchester, the North East, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, East Midlands, Teesside and Liverpool. There will also be at least one in each of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n
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Corporation tax for businesses is to increase from 19% to 25%, as planned. Companies that make a profit of more than \u00a3250,000 will pay 25% tax on their profits from April. The Chancellor pointed out that only 10% of UK companies will pay the full 25% rate.<\/p>\n
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The Annual Investment Allowance for small businesses is to be increased to \u00a31m, meaning 99% of all businesses can deduct the full value of all their investment from that year\u2019s taxable profits.<\/p>\n
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Small or medium-sized businesses will be able to claim a credit worth \u00a327 for every \u00a3100 they spend if 40% or more of their total expenditure is allocated to research and development.<\/p>\n
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The Government will invest \u00a3200m in local regeneration projects across England. A further \u00a3161m will be provided for mayoral combined authorities and Greater London, while \u00a3400m will be available for new \"levelling up partnerships\" in areas like Redcar, Cleveland and Blackburn.<\/p>\n
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From 1st August, the duty on draught products in pubs will be up to 11p lower than the duty in supermarkets.<\/p>\n
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Fuel duty will remain frozen and a 5p reduction will be maintained for a further year.<\/p>\n
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A \u00a363m fund will be created to support public leisure centres.<\/p>\n
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\u00a320bn of support will be allocated to the early development of carbon capture, usage and storage. The Chancellor says this will support up to 50,000 jobs, attract private sector investment, and help capture 20-30 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2030.<\/p>\n
He also says he will extend the Climate Change Agreement scheme for two years to allow eligible businesses \u00a360m of tax relief on energy efficiency measures.<\/p>\n
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The Chancellor says there will be a prize worth \u00a31m every year, for the next 10 years, \"to the person or team that does the most ground-breaking AI research\".<\/p>\n
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The Chancellor says a white paper is being published today on disability benefits, including plans to abolish the work capability assessment and to separate benefits entitlement from an individual\u2019s ability to work. As a result, disabled benefit claimants will always be able to seek work without fear of losing financial support.<\/p>\n
He also says there will be a new, voluntary employment scheme for disabled people, where the Government will spend up to \u00a34,000 per person to help them find appropriate jobs and put in place the support they need. This scheme will fund 50,000 places every year.<\/p>\n
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\u00a3400m in funding is being allocated to increase the availability of mental health and musculoskeletal resources for workers.<\/p>\n
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The Chancellor says sanctions will be applied more rigorously to those who fail to meet strict work-search requirements or choose not to take up a reasonable job offer.<\/p>\n
For those working low hours, he says the Administrative Earnings Threshold will rise from the equivalent of 15 hours to 18 hours at National Living Wage.<\/p>\n
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The pensions annual tax-free allowance will increase from \u00a340,000 to \u00a360,000 and the Lifetime Allowance (previously set at \u00a31.07m) will be abolished.<\/p>\n
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There will be a pilot of incentive payments of \u00a3600 for childminders joining the profession, and \u00a31,200 if they join through an agency.<\/p>\n
Funding to nurseries will increase to \u00a3204m from this September, rising to \u00a3288m next year, an average of a 30% increase on the two-year-old rate.<\/p>\n
The minimum staff-to-child ratio will change from 1:4 to 1:5 for two-year-olds in England, though this will remain optional.<\/p>\n
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Parents on Universal Credit will now receive up to \u00a3951 for one child and \u00a31,630 for two children per month, which will now be paid upfront.<\/p>\n
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30 hours of free weekly childcare is being extended to cover children below the age of three, and will eventually cover all children from the age of nine months. It will only apply to households where both parents are working. The provision only applies within term-time (38 weeks of the year).<\/p>\n
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The Chancellor says the Government will fund schools and local authorities to increase the supply of wraparound care so that all parents of school-age children can drop their children off between 8am and 6pm. The goal is that all schools will start to provide a wraparound offer, either on their own or in partnership with other schools, by September 2026.<\/p>\n
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