It is really looking like the Autumn Statement from the Chancellor, to all intense and purposes, is really a second Budget!
So today, a few changes have been announced, but the personal tax allowances remained frozen, so pulling more people into paying tax or higher tax than they used to. The main headlines are:-
Employee’s will pay slightly less Class 1 national insurance contributions (NIC) down to 10% from 12%, they will also get the right to insist their employer pay pension contributions into their existing pension, instead of having to join a new company scheme.
Pensioners will see their state pension retain its triple lock and their pension increase by 8.5% next year.
For businesses, the temporary full expensing relief scheme (you can claim all of the costs on buying equipment against corporation tax) will move to become a permanent feature.
For the self-employed, Class 2 NIC will be abolished and the Class 4 rate will be reduced to 8% from 9%.
The only other announcement was No Increase in alcohol duty, so our wine, beer and sprints should remain about the same re tax, but could increase due to supplier costs increasing or transport/other costs increasing.
I will let you decide how exciting these announcements are to you personally, but my humble opinion is, we need more in the way of tax cuts to help get more money into the country, so we can truly get back on our feet and grow again for the future. Real growth in the private sector is the only long term solution to any government, no matter what tweaks it makes, it needs to support its plans for the country and its people, now and going forward.