Autumn Budget 2017
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, announced last week that the government will publish its Autumn Budget on Wednesday 22 November 2017.
This will represent the second major budget of 2017, but as was previously announced in the Chancellor’s 2016 Autumn Statement, the November 2017 Budget represents the start of the process of the government moving to only one fiscal event each year, with the Budget being held in the autumn. Previously the Budget was announced in the Spring followed by an update in the autumn making the UK the only major advanced economy to make significant changes to the tax system twice a year.
The Autumn Budget will set out the government’s plans for the economy based on the latest forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), and from 2018 there will be a Spring Statement, responding to the forecast from the OBR, but no major fiscal event.
The intention for the budget taking place in the autumn is to allow for greater scrutiny and clarity of the proposals, as well as allowing for scrutiny by Parliament of tax changes before the new tax year actually commences. The aim is for the Finance Bill to reach Royal Assent in the Spring, before the start of the following tax year.
We will of course be reporting on the Budget on Wednesday 22 November, but if you do require any further information at this stage please contact our Tax Director, Jenny Marks.
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