The chancellor, Philip Hammond presented his Autumn 2017 Budget on 22 November 2017. These are our highlights of his live speech.
Our full coverage, in a more user-friendly order (for tax advisers and their clients) is in Autumn Budget 2017: rolling tracker.
Brexit
- 'At a critical stage', the UK is still looking for a special relationship with Europe.
- Country should be prepared for every eventual outcome: £3b earmarked to deal with extra Brexit changes, in addition to £700m already budgetted.
Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) predictions (for the term of this government)
- Currently 1.4 million unemployed: OBR predicts will fall by 600m.
- Productivity flat: GDP expected average 1.5%
- Debt too high: expected to peak this year and then start to decline. Currently 86.5% of GDP.
Investing in tech and infrastructure
- R & D Tax Credit to increase to 12%
- Doubling of EIS investment limits for knowledge intensive companies
- Patient Capital 'action plan' to unlock cash for investment in companies
- A new British Bank fund, with stand-by in case funding is no longer available post Brexit from the European Development Fund.
Cars, and car tech
- Autonomous vehicles: a new £400 million infra structure fund
- Joke to Jeremy Clarkson [who opposes autonomy]: not the first time you have been snubbed by Hammond and May
- £100m in Plug-In-Car Grant, and £40m for research into charging
- No BIK for at work vehicle charging of electrical vehicles
- New levy on new diesel cars
- Fuel duty continues to be frozen
Climate change
- Plastic bottle tax: a new charge on single use bottles.
Training
- More Maths for everyone: training incentives for schools and pupils.
- Computer training from schools to workplaces, includes a new partnership between Goverment, CBI & TUC with £30m grant for distance learning.
VAT
- VAT refunds for certain taxpayers affected by Scottish VAT reforms
Regions
- Scotland: measures for oil and gas
- Wales: tolls to be abolished on Severn Bridge
Universal Credit
- Various measures to assist cash flow for claimants and address deliver of benefits
- Removal of 7 day wait and advances of up to 100% of benefit
- Full statement on 23/11/2017.
Income tax rates
From April 2018:
- Personal allowance rises to £11,850
- Higher rate threshold to rise to £46,350
National Living Wage will rise from £7.50 an hour to £7.83, as planned
Misc tax and benefits
Alcohol Tax
From April 2018
- Freeze on alcohol duty
From April 2019
- Increased duty on strong ciders
Travel
A new Young Persons Rail card
NHS
- £10b for capital investment in front-line services
- £2.8b extra for NHS England, over 3 years
Tax Avoidance & Evasion
- We hear that HMRC has 'raked in an extra £160bn over seven years'.
Company tax
- Phased reduction in CT to continue
- Indexation allowance for capital gains for companies frozen at 31 Dec 2017
VAT
- No changes to threshold: will consult on design of threshold
- Online markets: joint liability
Business Rates
- Annual uprating: switch from RPI to CPI moved forward by two years.
- Staircase tax: measures to compensate business affected by high court ruling.
- Pub £1,000 discount to continue for a year.
- Revaluations will be every three years (instead of five)
Digitalisation and tax
- Government to publish a position paper on taxing digital platforms
- From April 2019 income tax on royalties paid by multinationals to their offshore companies in low tax juridcictions
Grenfell Tower disaster
- More financial assistance to create community space, deal with mental health and support the local authorities.
Empty properties
- Local authorities to be allowed to set a 100% premium on council tax.
Housing
- Aim to increase the supply of land and re-start the SME housing sector
- £44b to be committed in loans and guarantees to deliver 300,000 homes per year
- Planning reforms to make use of urban land, a statement being made in due course.
- Review of the gap between the number planning permissions granted and buildings being built.
- New 'growth corridor' to Oxford.
Stamp Duty Land Tax
- No SDLT for first time buyers purchaing homes costing up to £300,000
- Relief available on first £300,000 for homes costing up to £500,000 in London.
