Previewing the November Budget
As it so rarely happens that we have two Budgets in a year, we will be previewing the November Budget that George Osborne is due to unveil later this month.
Back in July this year the Conservatives unveiled their proposed “emergency Budget” having been elected in May, and this month’s report is set to reveal the progress that the party has made since being elected outright.
Many believed that the July Budget simply documented the failings of the previous coalition and how the new Conservative government were going to put things right, and this is the time when we are set to find out just how they intend to do this – and if they have done anything towards making improvements to our country.
We covered the July Budget statement in this article and one of the most controversial takeaways was the proposed cuts to tax credits. This move caused such uproar across the country that it ended up being voted against, with Mr Osborne left to lick his wounds and return to the drawing board.
It remains to be seen just how the Chancellor comes back from this obvious blow to his plans, the first major setback since the General Election, and with so many working families already on the ‘against’ side of that argument it’s going to take a monumental swing to get that particular proposal to go through.
From a business perspective, we already know that the corporation tax main rate will be 19% for the financial years beginning 1 April 2017, 1 April 2018 and 1 April 2019, and 18% for the financial year beginning 1 April 2020.
Tax duties are the other main area of interest from a professional and personal perspective, with people desperate to know how much they will be paying for the likes of fuel in their cars, alcohol and tobacco.
Then we have the area that affects a lot of working people and families, the National Living Wage (NLW) as it is to be known (previously the minimum wage). This figure could dictate either a surge in jobs as companies realise that they can pay to take on new staff.
What we do know is that from April 2016 a new NLW in the form of a premium on top of the NMW will be introduced for workers aged 25 and above. Initially set at £7.20, it is expected to rise to over £9 by 2020.
As soon as Mr Osborne makes his announcement, we’ll cover all of the important information right here so come back for detailed coverage on the key details.
