In association with Aequitas, LFR brings you the latest in a series of features offering insight and opinion on current business and finance news and how it relates to small and medium sized businesses:
Chancellor George Osborne delivered his 2015 ‘pre-election’ Budget in bullish mood. Proclaiming that ‘Britain is walking tall again’, the Chancellor announced that the national debt target has been met and predicted the ‘end of austerity’ a year early.
The Office for Budget Responsibility has revised economic growth slightly upwards from 2.4% to 2.5% for 2015, while inflation has been revised down to 0.2% and borrowing levels revised downwards from the previous Autumn Statement forecast, to £90.2bn for 2014/15.
However, despite assigning significant funds from bank asset sales and lower welfare bills to ‘pay down the national debt’, the Chancellor announced plans for further deficit reduction.
While keen to emphasise the benefits of ‘sticking to the fiscal path’, the Chancellor found room for a number of measures for individuals and businesses.
Among the headline measures for individuals was the announcement of plans to scrap annual tax returns, replacing them with ‘digital tax accounts’. The income tax personal allowance will also see additional increases, rising to £10,800 next year and £11,000 from April 2017, while the higher rate threshold will see an above inflation rise from £42,385 to £43,300 by 2017/18. Meanwhile, the pension lifetime allowance will fall from £1.25m to £1m from 2016/17.
The Chancellor also unveiled some key reforms for savers, confirming that five million existing pensioners will be given access to their annuities from April 2016. In addition, cash ISAs are set to be made more flexible from the Autumn. A new Personal Savings Allowance will make the first £1,000 of interest on savings tax-free (£500 for higher rate taxpayers), while first time buyers will be offered a helping hand onto the property ladder, via a new Help to Buy: ISA.
Having already confirmed the launch of a business rates review in the run-up to the Budget, the Chancellor announced that the Annual Investment Allowance will not be cut to £25,000 in January 2016, with the limit instead being reviewed at the 2015 Autumn Statement. Additional news for businesses included further measures aimed at building a Northern Powerhouse and supporting regional growth, investment in science and tax cuts for the North Sea oil and gas industry.
Other measures announced include a 1p cut in beer duty and a cancellation of September’s planned fuel duty increase, a move which prompted the Chancellor to quip ‘That’s a tenner off the tank with the Tories’.
Further reading: For a more detailed breakdown of the Budget and what it means for you and your business, please visit the Aequitas website and read their full Budget Report
WHAT THEY SAID
Our goal is for Britain to become the most prosperous major economy in the world, with that prosperity widely shared. So we choose economic security.
Chancellor George Osborne
It’s a recovery for the few, from a Government of the few… This is the reality behind the Budget that can’t be believed.
Ed Miliband, Labour leader
Stability and consistency are what businesses need to grow and prosper. This Budget sets the tone, providing a clear plan for fiscal health and growth.
John Cridland, Confederation of British Industry
He did not spell out where, if re-elected, he will make the huge spending cuts he plans for the next Parliament, nor did he tell Britain’s low paid workers which of their benefits he will cut.
Frances O’Grady, TUC
The review into business rates is long overdue. When complete, it must deliver tangible benefits to businesses and not end up as just another report that sits on the shelf.
John Allan, Federation of Small Businesses
This was a solid and responsible Budget. Few chancellors would be able to resist the temptation to binge on a £22bn windfall from the sale of bank shares this close to an election.
Simon Walker, Institute of Directors
About Aequitas Chartered Accountants and Registered Auditors
Aequitas are a highly regarded chartered accountancy practice that work with all sizes of owner managed business, through to SMEs and larger corporations. With specific knowledge of the print industry – Aequitas clients range from print service providers to product manufacturers – we can recommend that you get in touch with Aequitas today to find out how they can help your business.
