Jeremy Hunt Budget 2023 LIVE: Key points and reaction as Chancellor outlines ‘budget for growth’ with pensions and childcare overhaul
At 12.30pm today, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will deliver a spring budget promised to be a ‘budget for growth’, as the government works to revitalize the country’s ailing economy.
The Office for Budget Responsibility will also release its UK growth forecast, giving the Chancellor an indicator of the fiscal space he has to implement growth policies.
One of the Chancellor’s main aims will be to get more Britons back into the labor market, which has led to a sharp rise in economic inactivity over the past three years. But the Treasury is also facing pressure to help Britons at a time of stubbornly high inflation and a cost of living crisis.
A three-month extension of the energy price guarantee at its current level until June has already been confirmed.
Many also expect the Lifetime Retirement Allowance to rise to £1.8m, allowing people to save more for their retirement without incurring tax.
The fuel tax is set to be frozen, while the Chancellor is likely to extend free childcare support for young children in a bid to get parents back to work – at an estimated cost of £40bn to the Treasure.
Corporation tax is set to rise from 19% to 25% – despite calls from business leaders to scrap the hike.
