The 2024 United Kingdom budget was delivered to the House of Commons by Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 6 March 2024.[1][2] It was the third budget presented by Hunt since his appointment as Chancellor, and is expected to be the final budget before the next United Kingdom general election.
In the budget, Hunt abolished the non-dom tax status, reduced employee's national insurance by 2%, froze alcohol and fuel duties, increased tobacco and vapes duties, extended the oil and gas windfall tax, increased the child benefit threshold, announced further energy measures, announced further levelling-up funding, reduced capital gains tax by 4%, extended the Household Support Fund and increased the VAT threshold to £90,000 for small businesses, and kept income tax personal allowances at the same level (fiscal drag) [3][4]
The Budget announced the "biggest ever funding boost from government" for renewable energy.[5] Further funding for science and technology investment were announced,[6] with more investment to come from the private sector.[7][8] The budget announced more measures to protect farmers with the agricultural property relief.[9]
Background
The date of the 2024 budget was confirmed by HM Treasury on 27 December 2023. It is expected to be the last budget to be presented before the next general election.[10]
During the 2023 autumn statement, Hunt reduced National Insurance by 2% and announced tax relief for businesses. In January 2024 he hinted that he may seek to announce further tax cuts in the forthcoming budget, describing countries with lower taxes as having more "dynamic, faster growing economies".[11] But suggested a few weeks later there was likely to be less scope for tax cuts in the budget than had been the case during the 2023 autumn statement.[12]
On 23 January 2024, data from the Office for National Statistics indicated government borrowing in December 2023 was almost £5bn lower than had been forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility. Borrowing for the nine months up to December 2023 was £119.1bn, £11.1bn more than during the same period for 2022, but lower than the £123.9bn predicted by the OBR. Moreover, the data showed that borrowing for the month of December 2023 was £7.8bn, a fall from £16.2bn in December 2022, and the lowest monthly figure since 2019. This prompted analysts, including Ruth Gregory, deputy chief UK economist at Capital Economics, to suggest the Chancellor would have room to make potential tax cuts.[13] But the Institute for Fiscal Studies warned the UK was facing its worst economic situation since the 1950s, and said any promise of tax cuts may have to be postponed,[14] while the International Monetary Fund (IMF) "advised the UK against further tax cuts" during its assessment of the world economy.[15] The IFS also warned that the government should not make tax cuts unless it could explain how they would be financed.[16] On the weekend before the budget, Hunt told the BBC he wanted to move towards a low-tax economy but would do so in a responsible way.[17]
Official figures released on 15 February indicated the UK had entered recession, after the economy shrank by 0.3% between October and December, having already contracted between July and September 2023.[18]
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