Your Guide to Autumn Budget 2024
Taxes
• National Insurance contributions for employers will increase from 13.8% to 15% from April 2025.
• The threshold at which businesses start paying national insurance on workers' earnings will be lowered from £9,100 to £5,000.
• No extension on the freeze in income tax and national insurance thresholds.
• Lower rate for capital gains tax increased from 10% to 18%, with higher rate rising from 20% to 24%.
• Non-dom tax regime abolished.
• Inheritance tax thresholds will be frozen for a further two years until 2030.
• From April 2027, inherited pensions will be subject to inheritance tax.
• From April 2026, the first £1m of combined business and agricultural assets will continue to attract no inheritance tax at all, but for assets over £1m, inheritance tax will apply with 50% relief, at an effective rate of 20%.
• From the 2028/29 tax year, personal tax thresholds will be uprated in line with inflation.
Wages, allowances & reliefs
• National minimum wage will rise by 6.7% to £12.21 from April 2025.
• The minimum wage for those aged 18 to 20 will rise by 16.3% to £10 an hour.
• The weekly earnings limit for those claiming carers allowance will increase to the equivalent of 16 hours per week at the national living wage.
• Introduction of a fair repayment rate - level of debt that can be taken from a household’s monthly Universal Credit payment will reduce from 25% to 15%
• The state pension and pension credit standard will increase by 4.1% in the 2025/26 tax year.
• Employment allowance would be increased to £10,500 from £5,000.
• Business asset disposal relief will remain at 10% this year before rising to 14% in April 2025 and to 18% from 2026/27.
• Lifetime limit for business asset disposal relief maintained at £1m.
• 40% relief on business rates for the retail, hospitality and leisure industry in 2025/26 up to a cap of £110,000 per business.
Duty
• Flat-rate duty on all vaping liquid from 2026.
• Renew the tobacco duty escalator at RPI +2%, increase duty by 10% on handrolled tobacco this year.
• Fuel duty of a 5p cut remains in place.
• Draught duty cut by 1.7%, taking a penny off pints in pubs.
• Air passenger duty to increase by 50% for private jet passengers.
• Air passenger duty to increase by no more than £2 for an economy flight.
• Stamp duty land tax surcharge to increase for second homes to 5% which will come into effect from 31st October 2024.
Education
• Core schools’ budget will increase by £2.3bn in 2025.
• Business rates relief would be removed from April 2025.
• VAT levied on private school fees will come into effect at a 20% hike from January 2025.
• An additional £300m will be provided for further education.
• £1bn uplift will be given to fund special educational needs education.
• Tripling investment in breakfast clubs to fund them in thousands of schools.
• Additional £2.1bn to improve school maintenance which will help schools deal with the RAAC concrete crisis.
Ministry of Defence
• 2025 budget of £2.9bn.
• Further guarantee of military support to Ukraine of £3bn per year. Key sector funding
• Nearly £1bn for the aerospace sector to fund vital research and development.
• Over £2bn to support the electric vehicle industry and develop Britain's manufacturing base.
• Up to £520m for a new Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund.
• £25m for the Northeast Combined Authority to invest in the Crown Works Studio site in Sunderland.
• Over £20bn for government investment in research and development.
Transport and road improvements
• £3 bus fare cap will be extended to December 2025.
• Over £650m of local transport funding to improve connections across the country in towns, villages and in rural areas.
• £1.3bn of funding will be delivered to improve connectivity in our city regions.
• £500m increase in road maintenance budgets to fix an additional 1 million potholes per year.
Public services
• £1.3bn in grant funding was announced to deliver essential services. This includes £600m to social care and £230m to tackle homelessness and rough sleepers.
• Greater Manchester and the West Midlands will be the first mayoral authorities to receive integrated settlements from next year.
• Additional funding to crack down on the organised gangs which target retailers.
• £25m was awarded to the Welsh Government next year for the maintenance of coal tips.
• £3.4bn to Scotland through the Barnett formula funding.
• The budget also provides £1.7bn to the Welsh Government and £1.5bn to the Northern Ireland executive in 2025/26. Health sector
• £22.6bn increase in the day-to-day health budget, and a £3.1bn increase in the capital budget before the end of 2025.
• £1bn of health capital investment will be given to address the backlog of repairs and upgrades across the NHS estate.
• A further £1.5bn for new beds in hospitals across the country.
Other announcements
• £11.8bn will be set aside to compensate victims of the infected blood scandal.
• £1.8bn would be set aside to compensate victims of the post office horizon scandal.
• Funding to commemorate the 80th anniversary of VE and VJ Day next year, to honour those who have served a home and abroad.
• £2m will be put towards holocaust education.
• Funding for 11 new green hydrogen projects across England and Scotland.
• Kick start of the warm homes plan with an initial £3.4bn over the next three years to transform 350,000 homes.
Disclaimer: The content of this summary is intended for general information purposes only which is not intended to address your particular circumstances. The content should not be relied upon in its entirety and shall not be deemed to be or constitute advice.
While we believe this interpretation to be correct, it cannot be guaranteed that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. We cannot accept any responsibility for any action taken or refrained from being taken as a result of the information contained in this budget summary. Thresholds, percentage rates and tax legislation may change in Finance Acts and bases of, and reliefs from, taxation are subject to change and their value depends on an individual’s personal circumstances.