The Budget 2009

[Nick VR4]

CIGARETTES, ALCOHOL AND FUEL
• Alcohol taxes to go up 2% from midnight - putting the price of the average pint up 1p
• Tax on tobacco to go up by 2% from 6pm - equivalent to an extra 7p on a pack of 20 cigarettes
• Fuel duty to rise by 2p per litre from September, then by 1p a litre above indexation each April for the next four years
CAR SCRAPPAGE SCHEME
• From next month until March 2010 motorists to get £2,000 discount on new cars if they trade in cars older than 10 years
• The government will provide £1,000 with the industry expected to provide the other half
TAX
• Income tax for those earning more than £150,000 to rise to 50% from April 2010
• Tax relief on pensions to be reduced for people on more than £150,000 a year from April 2011
UK ECONOMY
• Economy forecast to shrink 3.5% in 2009
• Growth expected to pick up in 2010, expanding by 1.25%.
• Economy to grow by 3.5% annually from 2011
• Public borrowing to increase to £175bn this year
• Borrowing levels to rise by £173bn, £140bn, £118bn and £97bn in years after
• Consumer price inflation to fall to 1% by end of year.
• Capital investment to continue at historically high levels until 2012


JOBS AND TRAINING
• Government support for economy to protect 500,000 jobs
• All long-term unemployed under 25s to be offered job or training
• £1.7bn additional resources for Job Centre network
• £250m funding to help people get work experience in growth industries
• Funding to create 54,000 new places in sixth form education
HOUSING
• Scheme to guarantee mortgage backed securities to boost lending
• Stamp duty holiday for homes up to £175,000 to be extended to end of year
• Extra £80m for shared equity mortgage scheme
• £500m to kickstart stalled housing projects - including £100m for local authorities to build energy efficient homes
• £50m to upgrade housing for the armed forces
GOVERNMENT SAVINGS
• Tax loopholes and schemes identified which could provide £1bn of extra revenue over the next three years if closed
• An extra £9bn in efficiency savings is planned
• Public spending to be cut from 1.1% next year to 0.7% in 2011-2012
BENEFITS
• Child tax credit to rise by £20 by 2010
• Child trust funds for disabled children to rise by £100 a year, £200 a year for severely disabled children
SAVINGS
• Annual limit for tax-free ISAs to rise to more than £10,000 for over-50s this year and for everyone else next year
ENVIRONMENT
• Britain commits to cut carbon emissions by 34% by 2020
• An extra £1bn to help combat climate change by supporting low-carbon industries
• £525m for offshore wind projects over the next two years
• £435m support for energy efficiency schemes for homes, firms and public buildings
• £405m to encourage low-carbon energy and advanced green manufacturing
HELP FOR BUSINESS
• Help for loss-making companies extended - they will be able to reclaim more taxes paid in the last three years until November 2010
• Businesses' main capital allowance rate doubled to 40%
• New £750m strategic investment fund to help emerging technologies and regionally important sectors


PENSIONERS
• Grandparents of working age who care for their grandchildren will see that work count towards their entitlement for the basic state pension
• Winter fuel allowance to be maintained at higher level - £250 for over 60s and £400 for over-80s - for another year
• The basic state pension will be increased by at least 2.5%, regardless of inflation

[RJEvans]

Shocking. Nothing about road tax though?



My car is more than ten years old, would never trade it in for 2k!

[orionn2o]

the 2000 pound idea is such a gimmick.

If you drive a car over 10 years thats worthy of being crushed, i cant see you'll want a brand new car. And if you do then buy one, you'll lose about 2k as soon as you drive it out from the show room!

[elnevio]

And I don't think you'll be able to negotiate as much of a discount off the dealer either, so the 'value' of the £2,000 will be negated somewhat.

[pitslayer]

3p on fuel again!!!! getting ridiculous, we need a tax cut on fuel, it went up 2p the other week from 95.9 to 99.9

[mesobitchy]

it is more harmfull to the enviroment to distroy a car then to run what you already have.

some people just dont have a brain!
typical on the fuel rise! like they dont screw us as it is!

[Spirit]

Damn, no mention of corporation tax being reduced

[Roadrunner]

This government plans to borrow 348 BILLION POUNDS over the next two years. That's more money than all previous governments have borrowed collectively since the Bank of England was formed in 1695! This country is fecked, I'm looking for another one ...

[Johnny_Cashed]

Great, take more money from young people to give to the elderly and those with children.