The Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne will deliver this year's Autumn Statement on Thursday 5th December. The Autumn Statement provides an update on the Government's plans for the economy based on the latest forecast from the Office of Budget Responsibility.
As this date approaches we take a look at the current predictions for what will be in this year's Autumn Statement.
Economy
- Expected to announce stronger than expected growth forecasts and a moderate improvement in finances (Guardian)
Education
- More details are expected on the proposed universal free school meals for those in the first three years at primary school (Institute for Fiscal Studies)
Taxation
- More details expected on the proposal for a transferable income tax allowance for some married couples (Institute for Fiscal Studies)
- Possible fuel duty freeze and further corporation tax cuts (Xpert HR)
- Personal allowance is set to rise to £10,000 from April 2014 but a further rise could be announced to £10,500 or even £10,660 (Times)
- Introduction of CGT tax on foreign owned property in the UK (Telegraph)
- A long shot would be the reduction of the CGT rate currently at 28% (Telegraph)
Small businesses
- There are calls to reduce the tax burden on small businesses, one option would be to extend business rate relief for small companies which is due to expire next April (Telegraph)
Energy
- Possible announcement of a deal to reduce the amount spent on environmental and social programmes which adds around £112 to an average household energy bill, this could reduce bills by £50 (Telegraph)
Isas
- Possible changes to allow investments held in Child Trust Funds (CTF) to be transferred to an Isa that currently provide better returns (Times)
- Announcement may be made that the full Isa allowance annual can now be invested in a cash Isa, currently only 50% can be held in cash with the balance invested in a stocks and shares Isa (Times)
- A lifetime cap on the total amount invested in Isas could be introduced, possibly at £100,000 (Times)
Housing
- Since the announcement of the curtailment of Funding Lending Mortgages the Chancellor is under pressure to lay out the exit plans for his Help to Buy scheme (Telegraph)
- Stamp Duty threshold for properties worth £250,000 may be raised to £300,000 or a Stamp Duty holiday for properties worth between £125,000 and £250,000 (Telegraph)
