The Budget - will it make any difference ?

Strictly a spring statement not a budget but expect him to reduce fuel duty
He may increase the minimum wage or alter the rate at which the new NI rates come in
Who knows don’t expect any major giveaways

He won’t do much.

He needs to build up a war chess for the up coming election. Expect big cynical let’s buy the gullible voter give away loads next year.

I don't think he will be saying he will "do everything he can" as he did for Covid. Just a little here and there is much more likely. As WWM says, there is the war chest to build-up for the next election.

The sad thing is many people will suffer while he plays politics.

Possibly a promise for triple lock to return just before the next election? In fact, if he does promise a future return it will give us some idea of when they expect the next election to be.

DaisyAnne

Possibly a promise for triple lock to return just before the next election? In fact, if he does promise a future return it will give us some idea of when they expect the next election to be.

Already think that triple lock is to return next year must admit I do not follow it that much due to not receiving pension yet

I think there’ll be a reduction in fuel duty.

I hope he does something for the poorest, raising universal credit and pension credit would be a start, even if it’s only enough to counteract the effects of food and utilities inflation.

A friend paid over £2 a litre for fuel in Arran yesterday ....a hige portion of that is TAX if he cuts the tax by a tiny 5pence it will do begger all .He needs to cut the tax at least in half .Will he do anything worthwhile...NOT A CHANCE .This is the man who is spendng over £100k on building a swimming pool at ONE of his homes .He neither knows nor cares about any ordinary family struggling with all the huge rises in everything

We will get a long diatribe on how much covid19 has cost, how generous he was with furlough and how it needs to be paid for, then we will get a few scraps such as 5p off petrol ( this has obviously been leaked to the press to get reaction), a promise of return to triple lock to placate the pensioner vote. Basically, I predict he will talk for over an hour and say nothing of any benefit to any of us. Remember, the government are effectively denying raising 'taxes' with the increase in NIC, it is described as 'a levy'. I would ask how stupid do they think the electorate are, but then when I remind myself that the electorate are likely to return them to office again, I have answered my own question

The UK government has played a blinder by raising NIC rather than Income Tax. Here in Scotland the Scottish Government has limited devolved powers which enable them to vary Income Tax rates and bands by a small percentage to help the less well off. They have no such power over NIC so all Scots will have to pay the increased rates too.

Don’t forget too , that Sunak is hoping to go into the next election as leader, so his actions this year will be tempered by that ambition.

Don't know until I hear the full statement.

New NI threshold has been increased by £3,000 - good news.

Nothing for pensioners

Tulpia

New NI threshold has been increased by £3,000 - good news.

It’s not unqualified good news though. People who don’t pay NI are locked out of many benefits, and will lose years from their pensions. It might seem welcome to those on low incomes, but it benefits employers and in the long run the workers will lose out.

Contrary to what Sunak said, there is already a VAT exemption on solar panels and heat pumps in the EU, so this is not a benefit of Brexit.

Richard Murphy
@RichardJMurphy
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2m
What did not Sunak not do today? Nothing for those on benefits. Nothing on universal credit. No help for the NHS. Nothing on care. No windfall tax. Just £500 million to help those in fuel poverty. Nothing but a VAT cut for the Green New Deal. This is a disaster #budget2022

Sunak is also planning to reduce the basic rate of income tax to 19p for 2024.

The increase of £3500 to the start level for NIC will bring it more or less into line with the personal allowance but we will still have the 1.25% increase.

But the PA has been frozen for 5 years and inflation is already at 5.5% and some experts expect the rate to double by the end of the year.

Not much to be thankful for.

I certainly think Rachel Reeves understands and knows her brief and was glad to find I wasn't the only one who felt our Chancellor was in Sunak Land and using Newspeak a great deal of the time.

It seems to me, and I am no economist, that he has eased a little of what he was going to take from the JAMs but not helped the really poor or the never going to be able to manage in any way with the at least 8% inflation. Some will certainly become destitute.

The OBR has published a chart that shows that real household disposable income (a measure of how much you feel better or worse off) is expected to fall this year at the fastest rate since comparable records began in the 1950s. How that affects people who already have little or no disposable income I cannot imagine.

but we will still have the 1.25% increase. Just a quick correction; it is 1.25 points, but in excess of 10%. 12 to 13.25%. This is often said by people who do know better, and it is surprising ( until it appears in next month's payslips) how few people understand the difference. If Sunak talked about a 10% increase people would be justifiably concerned, but this has been promoted as a 1.25 levy, not the 10% tax increase it is in reality. Smoke, mirrors, and red boxes

Dinahmo

Sunak is also planning to reduce the basic rate of income tax to 19p for 2024.

The increase of £3500 to the start level for NIC will bring it more or less into line with the personal allowance but we will still have the 1.25% increase.

But the PA has been frozen for 5 years and inflation is already at 5.5% and some experts expect the rate to double by the end of the year.

Not much to be thankful for.

Isn't the so-called planned reduction in the basic rate in 2024 committing the next government? I thought a government could not do that.

He did say ‘before the end of this Parliament’ DaisyAnne.

Richard Murphy
@RichardJMurphy
Sunak made not a single new public spending commitment today. Nothing for the NHS, education, care, the police or any other vital service. Instead we got tax cuts

We definitely need to stop taxing people's ability to get to work (petrol)

That tax would come back anyway by supporting more businesses with more disposable income.

Supporting more businesses means more people in work.

Our whole system is designed to push people into poverty rath than support the economy