Overview
The Chancellor made his Autumn Statement in the House of Commons in which he set out his plan to put public spending on a sustainable footing, get debt falling, and restore stability. He confirmed that his priorities are stability, growth, and public services.
Below is an overview of the main announcements.
A full Baachu summary will be circulated once the suite of documents is published.
Key Announcements
- GDP is forecast to shrink by 1.4% next year, before returning to growth in 2024.
- The OBR has confirmed that global factors are the primary cause of inflation (which it expects to be 9.1% this year, and 7.4% next year). Its forecast will be included in the BSA summary later today.
- Unemployment is forecast to rise from 3.6% today, to 4.9% in 2024, before falling to 4.1%.
- Government spending will continue to increase in real terms every year for the next 5 years but at a slower rate.
- Personal tax thresholds will be maintained at current levels for a further 2 years, until April 2028. The threshold for when the highest earners start paying the top rate of tax will be brought down from £150,000 to £125,140.
- The Energy Profits Levy is being increased to 35% and will be extended to March 2028. The Government is also introducing a new temporary 45% levy on electricity generators.
- The Pensions Triple Lock and Pension Credit will be protected and rise in April 2023 by 10.1%.
- The Chancellor praised the Bank of England for doing an “outstanding job” tackling inflation and said that he will not change its remit.
- The Government will provide a £13.6bn package of business rates support.
- The building of new infrastructure such as roads, train lines and communities will be safeguarded by over £600bn in capital investment over the next 5 years. This includes Northern Powerhouse Rail, the HS2 and the East West Rail.
- The National Living Wage will see its largest ever cash increase to £10.42, and all National Minimum Wage rates will also receive a boost from April 2023.
- Working age benefits will rise by the rate of inflation at 10.1% and the household benefit cap to be increased from April 2023.
