Getting the economy “back on track” / Your Money 

With the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) predicting modest UK economic growth of 0.7% this year and 1.4% in 2025, during the Autumn Statement Chancellor Jeremy Hunt outlined 110 growth measures intended to get more people into work, cut business taxes and raise business investment, to get the economy “back on track.”

Contrary to speculation, reforms to Inheritance Tax (IHT) or Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) allowances were not announced, although some changes are proposed, including the ability for people to pay into multiple ISAs of the same type each tax year and permitting partial transfers of ISA funds between providers, from April 2024.

As a reminder:

Inheritance Tax bands remain at £325,000 nil-rate band, £175,000 residence nil-rate band, with taper starting at £2m – fixed at these levels until April 2028

The 2024/25 tax year ISA allowance remains at £20,000 and the JISA (Junior Individual Savings Account) allowance remains at £9,000.

Key business and personal taxation measures

A key business related measure was making the full expensing tax break for businesses permanent, while the headline personal taxation measure was the reduction in the main rate of Class 1 employee National Insurance contributions (NICs) from 12% to 10%. Providing a tax cut for 27 million working people, instead of taking effect on 6 April 2024, this took effect from 6 January 2024.

The self-employed also benefited with Class 2 NICs paid by those earning more than £12,570 being abolished from April and Class 4 NICs paid on profits between £12,570 and £50,270, to be cut by one percentage point to 8% from April 2024.

And pensions…

The government’s commitment to the pensions Triple Lock was honoured, meaning that the basic State Pension, new State Pension and Pension Credit standard minimum guarantee will be uprated in April 2024 in line with average earnings growth of 8.5% (September 2023). The value of the new State Pension will increase in April 2024 from £203.85 per week to £221.20 per week, while the basic State Pension will rise from £156.20 to £169.50 per week.

Also on the pension front, the latest steps to deliver the Mansion House Reforms include a call for evidence on allowing individuals to consolidate pensions by having one pension pot for life.

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