Key points in Chancellor George Osborne’s Autumn Statement:
- Next year's fuel duty rise will be cancelled
- Big expansion of start-up loans which will help create 50,000 new businesses
- Film tax relief will be extended
- Investment in social enterprises will be encouraged
- Office of Budget Responsibility says 3.1m more jobs will be created by business until 2019 – far more than the 1m or so lost in the public sector.
- Businesses have already created three jobs for every one lost in the public sector.
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He described the Government’s policies as “an economic plan that is working”.
- “(This is) a Government seeking a job-rich recovery for all.”
- Autumn Statement will be fiscally neutral
- Cap on welfare spending to be introduced next year but State pension to be excluded
- Government will "fix roof while sun is shining"
- Confirmation that State pension age will increase to 69 "in late 2040s"
- Bank of England to get more power to deal with asset bubbles
- Plan to put train fares up by 1% above inflation cancelled. Fares will rise by inflation only
Chancellor has now finished his Autumn Statement after 50 minutes on his feet.
