The Budget

[marktigger]

well it effects us all

[SKB]

Didn't hear a thing about defence spending. But we declared war on sugary drinks with sugar taxes. In reality, it just means the already obese sugar-addicted kids will continue to get fatter, but will have to pay a bit more for it. And HM Government earns a bit more tax revenue from it all too from two new taxes, one for drinks containing sugar more than 5g per 100ml and one for drinks with more than 8g per 100ml.

[shark bait]

Nothing about defence, I suppose that is a good thing.....

[marktigger]

the message about the economy isn't good and that will effect the defence budget

[shark bait]

The message on the economy isn't bad either, its still growing at 2% year on year which will maintain defence spending.

[bobp]

Meanwhile, Labour has raised questions about defence spending.

Shadow defence minister Toby Perkins wrote to Defence Secretary Michael Fallon asking for reassurances over a drop in the amount of money spent this financial year, and lower projected spending than promised in the last two Budgets.

Defence spending

The government has pledged to protect defence spending at the Nato target of 2% of GDP.

Mr Perkins asked about the effect "on our already stretched ability to respond to demands that our government places on our Armed Forces".

BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg said a Treasury source suggested the drop may be caused by an underspend at the Ministry of Defence but the government is yet to give a detailed response.

[SKB]

Autumn Statement 2016
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond (Conservative), delivered the 2016 Autumn Statement to the House of Commons on Wednesday 23rd November.
The Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, John McDonnell (Labour), responded on behalf of the Opposition @ 51:30

[FuNsTeR]

why are we borrowing 8 billion euros from the EIB for infrastructure projects if we are going to be quitting the EU ??

[dmereifield]

why are we borrowing 8 billion euros from the EIB for infrastructure projects if we are going to be quitting the EU ??

Not sue how it works exactly, but I think we put about 15% of the capital into the EIB, so perhaps we are borrowing our own funds. Besides, I think the EIB can invest in projects in non EU countries

[inch]

lots of papers saying forces budgets going to be slashed again via pound devaluation and going to be some v hard decisions made .never gets better does it chaps ,always one direction and thats less and less numbers and capability but its ok chaps our potential adversaries are not doing anything much with numbers and capability atm , so we can all sleep soundly

[Pseudo]

lots of papers saying forces budgets going to be slashed again via pound devaluation and going to be some v hard decisions made .never gets better does it chaps ,always one direction and thats less and less numbers and capability but its ok chaps our potential adversaries are not doing anything much with numbers and capability atm , so we can all sleep soundly

It's what the 52% voted for, apparently.

[SKB]

The Budget 2017
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond (Conservative), delivered the 2017 Budget to the House of Commons on Wednesday 8th March 2017.


Personal taxation
The main rate of National Insurance contributions for the self-employed to increase from 9% to 10% in April 2018 and 11% in April 2019
The Class 4 rate is levied on earnings of more than £8,060 a year
The increases, which will apply to earnings under £43,000, will raise £145m a year by 2021-22 at an average cost of 60p a week to those affected. All Class 4 earnings above £43,000 will continue to be taxed at 2%
Class 2 National Insurance, a separate flat rate contribution paid by self-employed workers making a profit of more than £5,965 a year, is to be scrapped as planned in April 2018
Taken together, millions of self-employed workers could pay an average of £240 a year more but ministers say those earning £16,250 will pay less
No changes to National Insurance paid by the employed and employers or to income tax or VAT
Personal tax-free allowance to rise as planned to £11,500 this year and to £12,500 by 2020


Business
£435m for firms affected by increases in business rates, including £300m hardship fund for worst hit
Pubs with rateable value of less than £100,000 to get a £1,000 discount on rates they would have paid
Rate rises for businesses losing existing relief will be capped at £50 a month
A tax avoidance clampdown totalling £820m to include action to stop businesses converting capital losses into trading losses and introduction of UK VAT on roaming telecoms services outside the EU
Review of taxation of North Sea oil producers


The state of the economy
UK second-fastest growing economy in the G7 in 2016
Growth forecast for 2017 upgraded from 1.4% to 2%
But GDP downgraded to 1.6%, 1.7%, 1.9% in subsequent years, then 2% in 2021-22
Annual rate of inflation forecast to rise from 2.3% to 2.4% in 2017-18 before falling to 2.3% and 2.0% in subsequent years
A further 650,000 people expected to be in employment by 2021


Public borrowing/deficit/spending
Annual borrowing £51.7bn in 2016-17, £16.4bn lower than forecast
Borrowing forecast to total £58.3bn in 2017-18, £40.6bn in 2018-19, £21.4bn in 2019-20 and £20.6bn in 2020-21
Public sector net borrowing forecast to fall from 3.8% of GDP last year to 2.6% this year, then 2.9%, 1.9%, 1% and 0.9% in subsequent years, reaching 0.7% in 2021-22. But borrowing still predicted to be £100bn higher by 2020 than forecast in March 2016
Debt rose to 86.6% this year, but will fall to 79.8% in 2021-22


Alcohol, tobacco, gambling and fuel
No increases in alcohol or tobacco duties on top of those previously announced
A new minimum excise duty on cigarettes based on a packet price of £7.35
Tobacco will rise by 2% above Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation, with a packet of 20 cigarettes costing 35p more
Duty on beer, cider, wine and spirits will increase in line with RPI inflation
This will equate to 2p on a pint of beer, 1p on a pint of cider, 36p on a bottle of whisky and 32p on a bottle of gin
Vehicle excise duty rates for hauliers and the HGV Road User Levy frozen for another year


Pensions and savings
Reduction in tax-free dividend allowance for shareholders and directors of small private firms from £5,000 to £2,000
The measure will come into force in April 2018, raising £2.63bn by 2021-2022
Measures to tackle abuse of overseas pension schemes


Education (England only)
£300m to support 1,000 new PhD places and fellowships in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects
Free school transport extended to all children on free school meals who attend a selective school
Upgrade fund of £216m for existing schools
Funding for 110 new free schools and grammar schools
New T-Levels to be introduced to give parity of esteem for technical education
Number of hours of training for technical students aged 16 to 19 increased by more than 50%, including a high-quality, three-month work placement


Health and social care
£100m to place more GPs in accident and emergency departments for next winter
Additional £325m to allow the first NHS Sustainability and Transformation Plans to proceed
An extra £2bn for social care over next three years, with £1bn available in the next year
Long-term funding options to be considered but so-called "death tax" on estates ruled out
Most sugary soft drinks to be taxed at 24p per litre as part of plans to reduce childhood obesity


Housing/infrastructure/transport/regions/science
Transport spending of £90m for the north of England and £23m for the Midlands to address pinch points on roads
£690 million competition fund for English councils to tackle urban congestion.
£270m for new technologies such as robots and driverless vehicles
£16m for 5G mobile technology and £200m for local broadband networks
£250m in funding for Scottish Government, £200m for Welsh Government and £120m for Northern Ireland Executive


Women
New funding totalling £20m to support the campaign against violence against women and girls
A further £5m committed to project to celebrate the centenary of women first getting the vote, and to educate young people about its significance
Funding of £5m to support people returning to work after a career break

[ArmChairCivvy]

Defence, anything (mentioned) ?

[dmereifield]

Defence, anything (mentioned) ?

You wish....

[SKB]

Not even another rubber dinghy.

[Timmymagic]

Didn't hear a thing about defence spending. But we declared war on sugary drinks with sugar taxes. In reality, it just means the already obese sugar-addicted kids will continue to get fatter, but will have to pay a bit more for it. And HM Government earns a bit more tax revenue from it all too from two new taxes, one for drinks containing sugar more than 5g per 100ml and one for drinks with more than 8g per 100ml.

By all accounts manufacturers have managed to reduce the amount of sugar in some drinks so as to be below the limits and avoid the tax. Which rather begs the question why didn't they do it before? The same thing happened with added salt. Somehow manufacturers managed to reduce the amount dramatically without too many problems or consumers noticing. What this really demonstrates is just how weak our government has been and how captured by vested interests they are. For years the food industry has fought every labeling measure etc. proposed. Remember the eminently sensible traffic light labeling that was proposed? All foods to be prominently labelled with a traffic light, green for healthy, amber for watch your consumption and red for eat minimal amounts/avoid. The industry shit a brick when they realised they would be exposed and after a little bit of pressure managed to get a load of reps on the working group from organisations such as Coca-Cola and McDonalds. A short time after it was all abandoned. No doubt some plum non-exec directorships/consultancies were winging their way to party high ups and senior civil servants...

[marktigger]

the governments priority at present is stopping social care falling apart

[SKB]

U-turn over Budget plan to increase National Insurance

(BBC)

Plans to increase National Insurance levels for self-employed people - announced in the Budget last week - have been dropped.

Chancellor Philip Hammond has said the government will not proceed with the increases which were criticised for breaking a 2015 manifesto pledge. In a letter to Tory MPs, he said: "There will be no increases in... rates in this Parliament."

Mr Hammond had faced a backlash by Conservative backbenchers, who accused him of breaking a general election manifesto commitment not to put up National Insurance, income tax or VAT.

In his letter explaining his change of heart, the chancellor said: "It is very important both to me and to the prime minister that we are compliant not just with the letter, but also the spirit of the commitments that were made.

"In the light of what has emerged as a clear view among colleagues and a significant section of the public, I have decided not to proceed with the Class 4 NIC measure set out in the Budget."

Mr Hammond's Budget announcement would have increased Class 4 NICs from 9% to 10% in April 2018, and to 11% in 2019, to bring it closer to the 12% currently paid by employees.

[SKB]

2017 Budget (Autumn)



^ Full Budget Statement

(BBC News)
Philip Hammond has delivered his second Budget as Chancellor. The key points of his speech:


The state of the economy
Growth forecast for 2017 downgraded from 2% to 1.5%.
GDP downgraded to 1.4%, 1.3% and 1.5% in subsequent years before rising to 1.6% in 2021-22.
Productivity growth and business investment also revised down.
Annual rate of CPI inflation forecast to fall from peak of 3% to 2% later this year.
Another 600,000 people forecast to be in work by 2022.


Brexit
£3bn to be set aside over next two years to prepare UK for every possible outcome as it leaves EU.


Public borrowing/deficit/spending
Annual borrowing £49.9bn this year, £8.4bn lower than forecast in March.
Borrowing forecast to fall in every subsequent year from £39.5bn in 2018-19 to £25.6bn in 2022-23.
Public sector net borrowing forecast to fall from 3.8% of GDP last year to 2.4% this year, then 1.9%, 1.6%, 1.5% and 1.3% in subsequent years, reaching 1.1% in 2022-23.
Debt will peak at 86.5% of GDP this year, then fall to 86.4% next year; then 86.1%, 83.1% and 79.3% in subsequent years, reaching 79.1% in 2022-23.


Alcohol, tobacco, gambling and fuel
Tobacco will rise by 2% above Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation while the minimum excise duty on cigarettes introduced in March will also rise, as will duty on hand-rolled tobacco.
Duty on beer, wine, spirits and most ciders will be frozen.
But duty on high-strength "white ciders" to be increased via new legislation.
Vehicle excise duty for diesel cars that do not meet latest standards to rise by one band in April 2018.
Tax hike will not apply to van owners.
Existing diesel supplement in company car tax to rise by 1%.
Proceeds to fund a new £220m clean air fund.
Fuel duty rise for petrol and diesel cars scheduled for April 2018 scrapped.


Personal taxation
Tax-free personal allowance to rise to £11,850 in April 2018.
Higher-rate tax threshold to increase to £46,350.
Short-haul air passenger duty rates and long-haul economy rates to be frozen, paid for by an increase on premium-class tickets and on private jets.


Business
VAT threshold for small business to remain at £85,000 for two years.
£500m for 5G mobile networks, fibre broadband and artificial intelligence.
£540m to support the growth of electric cars, including more charging points.
A further £2.3bn allocated for investment in research and development.
Rises in business rates to be pegged to CPI measure of inflation, not RPI.
Income tax to be applied from April 2019 on digital economy royalties relating to UK sales which are paid to a low-tax jurisdiction, raising about £200m a year.


Education (England only)
£40m teacher training fund for underperforming schools in England. Worth £1,000 per teacher.
8,000 new computer science teachers to be recruited at cost of £84m.
Secondary schools and sixth-form colleges to get £600 for each new pupil taking maths or further maths at A-level at an expected cost of £177m.


Nations/housing/infrastructure/transport/regions/science
£320m to be invested in former Redcar steelworks site.
Second devolution deal for the West Midlands.
£1.7bn transport fund for city regions.
£2bn for Scottish government, £1.2bn for Welsh government and £650m for Northern Ireland executive.
Scottish police and fire services to get refunds on VAT from April 2018.


Pensions, savings and welfare
£1.5bn package to "address concerns" about the delivery of universal credit.
Seven-day initial waiting period for processing of claims to be scrapped.
Claimants to get one month's payment within five days of applying.
Repayment period for advances to increase from six to 12 months.
New universal credit claimants in receipt of housing benefit to continue to receive it for two weeks.


Health and social care
£2.8bn in extra funding for the NHS in England.
£350m immediately to address pressures this winter, £1.6bn for 2018-19 and the remainder in 2019-20.
£10bn capital investment fund for hospitals.


Housing
Stamp duty to be abolished immediately for first-time buyers purchasing properties worth up to £300,000.
In London and other expensive areas, the first £300,000 of the cost of a £500,000 purchase by first-time buyers will be exempt from stamp duty
80% of all first-time buyers will not pay stamp duty.
Long-term goal to build 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s.
£44bn in government support, including loan guarantees, to boost construction skills.
100% council tax premium on empty properties.
Compulsory purchase of land banked by developers for financial reasons.
Review into delays in permitted developments going forward.
£28m for Kensington and Chelsea council to provide counselling services and mental health support for victims of the Grenfell fire and for regeneration of surrounding area.
New homelessness task force.


Defence
Nothing mentioned. At all.

[Dahedd]

Defence
Nothing mentioned. At all !!!!


Surely no surprise there? There's no votes in it and a huge percentage of the population have no interest in it at all bar Trooping the Colour.

[benny14]

RIP UK defense. The def sec must be preparing his wood chipper for our assets as we speak.

With all the former top brass and defense secs that have spoken up in the last couple weeks and there is absolutely nothing in the budget. The government truly does not give a shit. The carriers must be shiny enough for them.

[SKB]

Betcha those 138 F-35B's will be cut to around 48-ish.

[bobp]

Betcha those 138 F-35B's will be cut to around 48-ish.

If you read yesterdays Daily Telegraph you would realise that is a pretty safe bet.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/11 ... -mps-hear/

[albedo]

RIP UK defense. The def sec must be preparing his wood chipper for our assets as we speak.

That's Brexit for you though, isn't it? Entirely predictable. Before Brexit was allowed by Cameron to rear its head the economy was doing OK and hence there would have been more tax income for defence. But now the inevitable is all too visibly happening. Sterling down to $1.30ish and probably further to go, EMA off to Amsterdam (hence our pharmaceutical industry - one of the few really world-class sectors of UK enterprise - will slowly fade away), ditto the European banking regulators to Paris with real implications for the London financial sector. UK car industry starting to look very worried judging from their Select Committee appearance the other day. And that's just the start before anything has really changed re trade terms etc.

I honestly seriously think we'll be lucky to have half the defence budget that we currently have in a few years' time - there just won't be any money to spare. The average voter won't be prepared to see benefits or the NHS or education or eg policing cut any further. Where else is the money to come from?

[dmereifield]

RIP UK defense. The def sec must be preparing his wood chipper for our assets as we speak.

That's Brexit for you though, isn't it? Entirely predictable. Before Brexit was allowed by Cameron to rear its head the economy was doing OK and hence there would have been more tax income for defence. But now the inevitable is all too visibly happening. Sterling down to $1.30ish and probably further to go, EMA off to Amsterdam (hence our pharmaceutical industry - one of the few really world-class sectors of UK enterprise - will slowly fade away), ditto the European banking regulators to Paris with real implications for the London financial sector. UK car industry starting to look very worried judging from their Select Committee appearance the other day. And that's just the start before anything has really changed re trade terms etc.

I honestly seriously think we'll be lucky to have half the defence budget that we currently have in a few years' time - there just won't be any money to spare. The average voter won't be prepared to see benefits or the NHS or education or eg policing cut any further. Where else is the money to come from?

For all his faults, it wasn't that "Cameron allowed it to rear its head"....a majority of the voting age public were unhappy with the UK's relationship with the EU, so much so that a majority of them voted to leave it altogether. It was festering and needed to be dealt with...the longer it was ignored the greater the risk of further disenfranchising voters, further loss of trust in the "establishment" and continuing to fuel the likes of UKIP. It couldn't be swept under the carpet much longer.....