Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has delivered his packed Autumn statement including a 2% cut to national insurance.
“The combined impact (of today’s announcement) will raise business investment, get more people into work and increase GDP,” he said. “We reduce taxes, reward work and we back businesses with 110 growth measures.
Key points from his statement today:
- An increase in the full new state pension by 8.5% to £221.20 a week – worth up to £900 more a year – from next April.
- Benefits will increase by 6.7%, the September rate of inflation, with the increase coming into effect in April.
- A cut of employee National Insurance from 12% to 10% – which will help 27 million people in the country from January 6. Those earning more than £12,570 a year pay 12% national insurance on pay up to £50,200, while self-employed workers pay 9%.
- Jobseekers will have benefits such as free medicines and legal aid removed if they’re found not to be looking for work under the Back to Work Plan which aims to bring 1.1 million people back into work.
- All alcohol duty will be frozen until August.
- People living closest to new pylons and electricity substations will receive up to £10,000 off their bills over 10 years.
- Mr Hunt pledged to provide £7m to tackle antisemitism in schools and universities.
Criticism
Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said that the tax announcements would leave people worse off.
“Prior tax increases by the Tories and failure to update tax bands amount to an effective 10% hike,” she added.
She argues that the reduction in National Insurance would not offset the earlier increases.
The Conservatives have held back growth, they have crashed our economy, increased debt, trashed our public services, left businesses out in the cold, and made life harder for working people”.
“Does anything in Britain work better today than when the Conservatives came into office 13 years ago? “It is time for change.”
