Britain's Kwarteng scraps planned corporation tax rise

LONDON (Reuters) - British finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng confirmed on Friday that the government would not go ahead with a plan to increase corporation tax to 25%, holding it instead at 19% in a bid to spur economic growth.

Britain's 19% corporation tax rate had been due to rise to 25% in 2023 under plans announced last year by former finance minister Rishi Sunak.

"We will have the lowest rate of corporation tax in the G20," he told parliament during the presentation of a mini-budget. "This will plough almost 19 billion pounds a year back into the economy."

(Reporting by Kate Holton and David Milliken; editing by William James)