The Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne MP has delivered his Autumn Statement 2013 to Parliament, alongside the publication of the Office for Budget Responsibility’s updated forecasts for growth and borrowing.
Key announcements included:
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has increased its growth forecast to 1.4 per cent for 2013 (from 0.6 per cent at the time of the Budget in March 2013) and 2.4 per cent for 2014.Unemployment is forecast to fall from 7.6 per cent this year to 7 per cent in 2015, and to 5.6 percent by 2018.
The deficit is forecast to fall to 6.8 percent this year and a small surplus is expected by 2018-19.
Borrowing is forecast to fall from £111bn for this year to £96bn in 2014-15, to £79bn in 2015-16, to £51bn in 2016-17, and to £23bn in 2017-18.
During his statement, the Chancellor announced:
On the Funding for Lending Scheme, funding will be skewed towards supporting small and medium sized enterprises, rather than household lending.
On business rates, the Chancellor announced that rates will be capped, the Small Business Rate Relief will be extended to April 2015, and small retail premises will receive a discount of £1,000 against their rate bills. He also announced a commitment to clear 95% of rate appeals by July 2015, and will continue to consult on making the system more effective and transparent.
On apprenticeships, the Chancellor announced that the Government will reform the apprenticeship funding system by enabling employers to receive funding for the training costs of apprentices directly through an HMRC-led system. £40 million will be invested in higher apprenticeships to deliver an additional 20,000 apprenticeship starts over the next two years. Following high demand, the Government has committed to providing an additional £160 million to Start Up Loans over the next 6 years, doubling the amount of funding and supporting enterprise.
The Autumn Statement document, containing full details of all measures, can be accessed via the following link