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Autumn Statement 2013: what it means for you
George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, has delivered the Autumn Statement for 2013. In a much-leaked speech, peppered with references to the "difficult decisions" that still need to be made, the Chancellor announced the following measures that may have an impact on your bank balance.
Energy bills
For a long time now, whenever an energy provider has put its bills up, one of the things it has blamed has been the so-called ‘green’ levies it has to pay, such as the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) target. This is a legal obligation for energy firms to help people on lower incomes improve the energy efficiency of their homes, for example by providing insulation measures.
However the Government this week announced that it would be consulting on whether it should lower that target, leading to a planned saving of up to £35 per household.
It is also taking over the provision of the Warm Home discount scheme for those on low incomes from the energy firms, which it says will be paid for by money recouped from tax avoidance.
In total, it should mean a saving of around £50 a household.
[Fed up with your energy supplier? See if you can switch and save]
Future pensioners
Younger people had better get used to the idea of working well into their twilight years, thanks to a revamping of the way State Pension age will be calculated.
The State Pension age will now be tied to life expectancy, with the aim that people will not spend any more than a third of their life enjoying a pension.
There will be no change to the State Pension age rises previously announced, with it moving to 66 by 2020 and 67 by 2028. But it will now likely move to 68 in the mid-2030s, 69 in the mid-2040s and 70 in the mid-2050s.
A voluntary scheme will be introduced allowing pensioners and those approaching pension age to top up their National Insurance contributions to ensure they get the maximum single-tier State Pension when it's introduced in 2016.
[Save for your retirement in a tax-free ISA]
Current pensioners
The Basic State Pension will increase by £2.95 a week from next April.
Motorists
Next year’s fuel duty rise has been cancelled. Fuel had been set to rise by 2p a litre.
Motorists will no longer need to display a tax disc on their vehicle to show that it is fully taxed. Instead the whole process is moving online. A database will be used to identify vehicles which are not registered.
(Some) married couples
The Conservative Party announced at its annual conference that it would be pressing ahead with a married couple’s tax allowance, the details of which were outlined today.
The idea is that if one partner doesn’t use their full personal tax allowance – the amount you can earn before paying income tax – they will be able to pass £1,000 of that allowance on to their spouse.
The new rules apply to anyone who is married or in a civil partnership and is available to all basic rate (20%) taxpayers. It is worth up to £200 a year.
The allowance will be automatically increased in line with the personal tax allowance.
Rail commuters
Train fares were set to go up by an average of 1% above inflation next year, which would have been 4.1%. However, they will now be kept flat in real terms, meaning they will go up 'only' by the rate of inflation of 3.1%.
Prospective homeowners
Help to Buy is the Government’s scheme to help people get on to the housing ladder if they only have a deposit of 5%.
A number of lenders have already signed up, but the Chancellor announced that 'challenger' banks Aldermore and Virgin will begin offering Help to Buy mortgages this month.
[See the latest mortgage rates, including Help to Buy]
Social housing tenants
Councils will look to sell off social housing in more expensive areas.
Working people in social housing will also be given priority to move if they need to due to their job.
Future students
There will be an extra 30,000 places for students at universities from next year.
The cap on student numbers will also be abolished from 2015. This is all being financed by the selling-off of part of the existing student loans book.
Employers
There will be a discount worth £1,000 for small businesses on business rates. And future business rate rises will be capped at 2%, rather than being tied to the Retail Prices Index measure of inflation.
Employer National Insurance Contributions – something the Government likes to refer to as the ‘jobs tax’ – will be removed for employees under 21.
Parents of young children
All children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 will receive free school meals from next year.
