Initial thoughts on the Autumn Budget

Newspapers as diverse as The Sun The Daily Telegraph and The Guardian were all calling for a ‘radical’ Budget. In the event the speech by chancellor Philip Hammond appeared to be more about a desire to ‘embrace the future’ with apparently little of immediate interest to those dealing with direct taxation. However digging a little deeper into the supporting documents – The Red Book and the Overview of Tax Legislation and Rates documents – unearthed further information relevant to those advising individuals and businesses.

Individuals and expenses

In keeping with its stated aim of increasing the personal allowance to £12 500 by 2020 this will rise to £11 850 for 2018-19 while the higher rate threshold for income tax increases to £46 350.

The starting rate for savings income will remain at £5 000 for 2018-19 and the...