It’s been an honour to support Rishi Sunak MP and the Treasury team on the Autumn Budget 2021 in my role as a Parliamentary Private Secretary.
This Budget contains measures to support a strong economy for the British people as we look ahead to a post-Covid Britain. Here are my top 10:
- Raising the National Living Wage to £9.50, giving a £1,000 pay rise to two million of the lowest paid, and increasing pay for public sector workers following a period of more targeted pay
- Significant tax cut for low-income families by reducing the Universal Credit (UC) taper rate from 63% to 55%, and increasing the Work Allowance by £500. Taken together, this is a tax cut for two million low-income families worth £1,000 a year
- Freezing fuel duty, freezing alcohol duty and radically reforming the system to make it simpler, fairer and healthier, and cutting beer duty by 3 pence in a pint in a pub through our new Draught Relief. We are also cutting the price of English sparkling wine and prosecco by as much as 64 pence, which will benefit brilliant local businesses in East Surrey like Godstone Vineyards
- Cutting business rates by 50% next year for 90% of retail, hospitality and leisure businesses, and freezing all rates
- Increasing total departmental spending by £150 billion by 2024 - the largest real terms increase this century and record levels of capital investment not seen for 50 years
- Over £495 million of funding for local roads maintenance in the South East - enough to fill over 7 million potholes over the next three years - and over £141 million for smaller transport improvement priorities
- Increasing core schools funding by over £4.7 billion, increasing skills funding by 42% in cash terms, tripling special educational needs and disabilities capital funding to £900 million a year to create 30,000 SEND school places, and supporting education recovery with an extra £1.8 billion
- Increasing overall skills spending by £3.8 billion over the Parliament, and investing £560 million to improve the basic maths skills of over half a million adults through our new numeracy programme 'Multiply'
- Investing £300 million in new Family Hubs and the Start for Life programme, an extra £170 million for childcare providers, £150 million to support training and development for the early years workforce, and an extra £200 million for the Supporting Families programme
- Boosting the Nature for Climate Fund by £125 million, an extra £250 million to halt biodiversity loss, and funding free food waste collections in every area from 2025
