Boosting family finances
Because of the Conservative goernment's careful management of the economy, we can invest more in our vital public services whilst also keeping taxes low, supporting living standards and backing business.
From this weekend, 32 million people across the country will see their taxes cut – saving the typical taxpayer £130 over the year and delivering on our manifesto promise one year early and giving hard-working people a well-earned tax cut.
Fuel duty will also be frozen for the ninth year in a row helping to keep costs down for motorists and we will also take further steps to back business by cutting business rates.
Earlier this week the National Living Wage saw its biggest ever increase giving almost 2 million people a pay rise.
Only the Conservatives are building a stronger and fairer economy, cutting taxes for families and businesses, while reducing the deficit and getting debt falling.
Labour's reckless plans would mean more debt, higher taxes and fewer jobs which would hit ordinary working people just as happened when they were last in government.
What we are doing:
From this weekend, 32 million people across the country will see their taxes cut – saving the typical taxpayer £130 over the year and delivering on our manifesto promise one year early and giving hard-working people a well-earned tax cut.
Fuel duty will also be frozen for the ninth year in a row helping to keep costs down for motorists and we will also take further steps to back business by cutting business rates.
Earlier this week the National Living Wage saw its biggest ever increase giving almost 2 million people a pay rise.
Only the Conservatives are building a stronger and fairer economy, cutting taxes for families and businesses, while reducing the deficit and getting debt falling.
Labour's reckless plans would mean more debt, higher taxes and fewer jobs which would hit ordinary working people just as happened when they were last in government.
What we are doing:
- Increasing the Personal Allowance – the amount you earn before you start paying income tax – to £12,500 a year earlier than planned so the typical taxpayer will be £1,205 better off than in 2010. On 6 April the Personal Allowance will increase to £12,500 and the Higher Rate Threshold in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland will rise to £50,000. The upper National Insurance contributions thresholds will also increase in line with the Higher Rate Threshold. These changes will cut taxes for 32 million people and take 1.74 million people out of income tax altogether compared to 2015-16.
- Making the biggest ever increase to the National Living Wage – boosting the earnings of the lowest paid. The National Living Wage has increased from £7.83 to £8.21 an hour, representing an increase to a full-time minimum wage worker’s annual earnings of over £690.
- Increasing the Universal Credit work allowance by an extra £1,000 per year. From April 8, the annual work allowances in Universal Credit will rise by over £1,000, increasing the amount that 2.4 million households can earn annually before their Universal Credit starts to be withdrawn. This change will see 2.4 million families keep up to an extra £630 per year of what they earn.
- Cutting business rates by a third for up to 90 per cent of all retail properties. As of 1 April, businesses are eligible for a 1/3 discount to the business rates bills on their retail property with a rateable value below £51,000, up to State aid de minimis limits. To further reduce costs, business rates have been uprated in line with CPI rather than RPI, following the permanent switch in April 2018.
- Freezing fuel duty for the ninth successive year – keeping the costs of driving down. By next April, this will have saved the average car driver a cumulative £1,000. Most other vehicle taxes are being uprated in the normal way in line with previously announced policy.
- Keeping the cost of family holidays down. Air Passenger Duty will remain unchanged from 2012 levels for short-haul flights, and long-haul economy rates will remain frozen at the 2018-19 rate, benefitting 96 per cent of passengers. Long haul business and first-class rates will rise as set out at Autumn Budget 2017.
- Reducing burdens on charities so they can collect more money for good causes. A set of measures will come into force to reduce administrative burdens on charities, including increasing the individual donation limit under the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme to £30, which applies to small collections where it is impractical to obtain a Gift Aid declaration.
- Incentivising business investment with a new Structures and Buildings Allowance. To support business investment, we have introduced a major new Structures and Buildings Allowance and a temporary increase in the Annual Investment Allowance to £1 million. Capital allowances special rate will decrease from 8 per cent to 6 per cent to more closely match average accounts depreciation.
- Raising the additional residence threshold for inheritance tax from £125,000 to £150,000. This provides an additional threshold for homes passed on to direct descendants and can be used in addition to the £325,000 threshold. This will give many married couples and civil partners an effective £950,000 threshold for inheritance tax.
- Taking further steps to tackle tax avoidance, evasion and unfair outcomes so there is more money for our vital public services. Further changes to crack down on tax avoidance, evasion and unfair outcomes will also come into effect. These will includes new guidance to prevent boundary pushing in VAT groups, a Fulfilment House Due Diligence Scheme to prevent online VAT fraud, as well as new rules on profit fragmentation to prevent businesses from avoiding UK tax by arranging their UK-taxable profits to accrue to territories where significantly lower tax is paid than in the UK.
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