✕CloseAutumn budget 2023: Key announcements from Jeremy Hunt's statement
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox
Get our free View from Westminster email
Jeremy Hunt cut national insurance for 27 million workers as he delivered an autumn statement that he claimed would bring tens of thousands more people into work.
The Chancellor said the two-percentage-point reduction would save someone earning £35,000 more than £450.
But millions of workers will face a squeeze on their finances with the tax burden still set to reach a record high, with the Treasury raking in £200bn as starting thresholds remain unchanged.
With an election expected next year, the national insurance cut will be rushed through Parliament to boost Rishi Sunak’s chances.
The Office for Budget Responsibility also significantly downgraded its growth forecasts, with the economy now expected to grow just 0.6 per cent this year and 0.7 per cent next.
Mr Hunt raised the National Living Wage to £11.44 an hour, kept the pensions triple lock and vowed to increase in-work benefits by 6.7 per cent.
Labour said growth had hit a dead end under the Conservatives.
And campaigners accused the government of punishing people by framing disability as a lifestyle choice as he announced a crackdown on benefits for people with mobility or mental health struggles unless they work from home.
Recommended
- What does the Autumn Budget mean for my money and the Tory party? Ask Sean O’Grady anything
- Why now is the time for Jeremy Hunt to rescue the high street
- What tax cuts can we expect, and will they make it harder for Labour?
- Budget: What’s in and out of Jeremy Hunt’s autumn statement?
- Hunt promises 110 measures for growth as he seeks to boost Tory election hopes
Show latest update
We are now putting our live coverage of the autumn statement on hold for this evening.
Jane Dalton22 November 2023 20:181700684118
Comment: Sorry, Mr Hunt, I can’t raise a glass (of relatively cheap beer) to tax cuts
Sean O’Grady fears the bad times aren’t over:
Sorry, Mr Hunt, I can’t raise a glass (of relatively cheap) beer to your tax cuts
Jeremy Hunt’s autumn statement had plenty to cheer up Tory backbenchers. But for the rest of us, there was that sinking feeling that the bad times are far from over, writes Sean O’Grady
Jane Dalton22 November 2023 20:151700683818
Pension pot for life idea 'would raise burden for employers’
Pension savers could have a “pot for life” under plans to tackle the problem of people building up lots of smaller pots when they move from job to job.
The Government wants to hear evidence on a lifetime provider model, which would allow people to have contributions paid into their existing pension scheme when they change employer, providing greater control over their pension.
Rachel Vahey, head of policy development at AJ Bell, said: “The biggest sticking point to these proposals is the burden on employers. Currently, UK firms of all sizes – from corner shops to multinationals – are required to set up a workplace pension scheme for their staff.
“This is already a significant administrative undertaking. But forcing both large and small businesses to connect to any pension scheme an employee chooses could significantly increase that burden.”
Jane Dalton22 November 2023 20:101700682918
Watch: Hunt says Budget means biggest UK tax cuts since 1980s
Mr Hunt said the Budget meant the biggest tax cuts since the 1980s, but Paul Johnson, of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), said it was a “tiny bit cheeky”:
Hunt says Autumn budget sees biggest UK tax cuts since 1980sJane Dalton22 November 2023 19:551700681718
Tax projection calculator: See how autumn statement will affect you
The Independent’s Budget calculator, created by tax advisory firm Blick Rothenberg, below will help you to determine whether you are better or worse off following the autumn statement:
Tax projection calculator: See how Jeremy Hunt’s Budget will affect you
Enter your details to see whether you’re better or worse off following chancellor’s budget as he cuts national insurance
Jane Dalton22 November 2023 19:351700680518
One Nation Tories praise ‘compassionate’ budget
Tory moderates in the One Nation group praised Mr Hunt. Deputy leader Stephen Hammond said the chancellor’s moves were both “fiscally responsible” and “compassionate” – pointing to the boost for living wage and benefits being uprated with a higher inflation figure.
“Today’s statement reflects the importance of controlling inflation but at the same time brings welcome relief to families and businesses,” he said.
Jane Dalton22 November 2023 19:151700679638
House prices forecast to fall by thousands of pounds next year
House prices are set to fall by thousands of pounds next year as interest rates remain high, forecasters have said:
What Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement means for house prices explained
Forecasters delivered disappointing news for homeowners as they are set to lose thousands next year
Jane Dalton22 November 2023 19:001700678692
IFS: Tax cuts ‘not recipe for good public finances management’
Jeremy Hunt’s tax cuts amid uncertain times are “not a recipe for good management of the public finances”, one of the UK’s top think tanks has warned.
The influential Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said “the prudent thing to do” would have been to use the financial headroom to “build a larger buffer into his plans”. Instead Mr Hunt relied on the government’s “poorly designed and loose fiscal target” to pay for tax cuts that will hamstring whoever is chancellor after the next election, it said.
“That might make for good politics. It does not make for good policymaking,” IFS director Paul Johnson added.
In a scathing verdict on Mr Hunt’s autumn statement, Mr Johnson said: “There’s a material risk that those plans prove undeliverable and today’s tax cuts will not prove to be sustainable.”
And he noted that despite the significant cut to national insurance, “these tax cuts won’t be enough to prevent this from being the biggest tax-raising parliament in modern times”.
Jane Dalton22 November 2023 18:441700678539
Hunt leaves ‘ticking time bomb of austerity' for next government
Stephanie Flanders, head of economics at Bloomberg, said the predicted spending cuts in future years would leave a “ticking time bomb” for whoever is in charge in the next parliament.
The Office for Budgetary Responsibility (OBR) said Jeremy Hunt had spent “virtually all” of the £27bn-worth of “fiscal headroom” – mainly on the £21bn cost of tax cuts, plus some more on the cost of welfare reforms.
It also warned that the windfall spent on tax cuts was “mainly a reflection of a £19.1bn erosion in the real value of departmental spending”.
The OBR said “a 2.3 per cent-a-year real-terms fall in day-to-day spending” would “present challenges” – polite speak for painful spending cuts.
Ian Mulheirn, an economist at the Resolution Foundation think tank, said it showed the “completely implausible implications” of the tax cuts.
Jane Dalton22 November 2023 18:421700676638
Watch: Rachel Reeves quotes The Independent in clash with Hunt
Rachel Reeves quotes The Independent during Budget clash with HuntJane Dalton22 November 2023 18:10NewerOlder✕
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
SubscribeAlready subscribed? Log in
Popular videos
{{/link}}