The Economy and Inflation, Some Better News at Last
Chiswick Homefields councillor Gerald McGregor reports back
Cllr Gerald McGregor
November 25, 2023
Going into the Autumn Statement the Chancellor already knew that he had hit the Government’s target of halving inflation by the end of 2023.
Whilst this is largely positive news, in March the Office of Budget Responsibility estimated that inflation would fall to 0.9 per cent in 2024, meaning that inflation remains fairly persistent for a longer period; this could impact on future decisions by the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy when it comes to setting the base interest rate in future which impacts on mortgages.
The latest forecast shows that GDP growth will reach 0.6 per cent this year before rising to 0.7 per cent next year. In the following year, GDP growth is forecast to rise again to 1.4 per cent before growing to 1.9 per cent in 2026.
National Living Wage (NLW)
Will rise to £11.44 per hour from 1 April 2024, and the NLW will be expanded to include 21-year-olds for the first time by lowering the age threshold.
Support for Small and Medium sized Businesses and Tax allowances
Hounslow has large numbers in this category, in particular hospitality and retail, with Heathrow travel and leisure sectors being particularly important.
Having run a small business himself, the Chancellor said that he understood the pressures they faced and wanted to boost their growth and productivity. To support those businesses, the 75 per cent business rates discount would be extended. The Chancellor also confirmed that he would freeze the small business multiplier for a further year.
However, his big announcement was that he would permanently extend the Full Expensing capital allowance, to provide certainty to all businesses looking to invest.
Originally due to end in 2026, the establishment of this Corporation Tax relief as a permanent allowance is thought to be worth over £10 billion a year – making Full Expensing the biggest business tax cut in modern British history according to the Government.
Securing the Triple Lock Pension
Many of us in Chiswick will always have some sort of anxiety regarding pensions. Especially in a cost-of-living crisis there is always uncertainty with finances in this climate. The chancellor was able to save the continuing capacity of the government to keep the Triple Lock in place. Boosting pensions, in line with the Triple Lock, by 8.5 per cent, ensuring dignity in older age for those who have worked their entire lives. The Government are honouring the Triple Lock and uprating the State Pension by 8.5 per cent, this means the basic State Pension will be £3,750 higher than in 2010.
Assisting with the Cost of Living in Hounslow
A dominant factor in many people’s lives has been imported high inflation rates. Whilst inflation has fallen, many individuals are still experiencing the daily impact of higher shopping costs. The Chancellor wanted to make it clear that the Government was there to support people.
The announcement of a cut to the employee National Insurance rate from 12 per cent to 10 per cent from 6 January 2024 means that individuals earning the national average wage of £35,400 will receive a tax cut in 2024-25 of over £450.
To help self-employed individuals, the Chancellor confirmed further changes to National Insurance, including the abolition of Class 2 NIC and the main rate of Class 4 NICs will fall from 9 per cent to 8 per cent – providing further savings to the self-employed.
The Chancellor also confirmed that the National Living Wage (NLW) would rise to £11.44 per hour from 1 April 2024, while the NLW will be expanded to include 21-year-olds for the first time.
Numbers courtesy of Chartered Accountants Midgely Snelling & co in Staines and their quick response Budget Report.
Reporting Back on The Council
Everything this Autumn has been standing still (including Chiswick Traffic) whilst the local authority avoids meeting scrutiny or questions from members of the public and their councillors. We have yet to hear about the budgeted council tax for next year and the recent cabinet meeting passed a slew of business with a lengthy agenda for the Council meeting on Tuesday 28 November. The administration appears not to want the bother of having regular meetings. The risk of Covid is reduced yet we are nowhere near the monthly meetings held in recent history. Members of the cabinet appear more concerned about external matters than the interests of the people of Chiswick and Hounslow.
Councillor Gerald McGregor
gerald.mcgregor@hounslow.gov.uk
07866 784821
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Tuesday 28 November at 7:30pm – Hounslow Borough Council 6th Floor, Hounslow House, 7 Bath Road, Hounslow TW3 3EB Open to Public
Tuesday 5 December from 6:30pm – Chiswick Area Forum
Wednesday 6 December at 6:30pm – Cabinet Question Time
Thursday 7 December at 7:00 – Planning committee
Tuesday, 12 December at 7:00pm – Cabinet 6th Floor, Hounslow House, 7 Bath Road, Hounslow TW3 3EB
Tuesday, 16 January 2024 at 7:00pm Cabinet 6th Floor, Hounslow House, 7 Bath Road, Hounslow TW3 3EB
Tuesday 27 February 2024 at 7:30pm – Meeting of Borough Council (Budget Setting!) 6th Floor, Hounslow House, 7 Bath Road, Hounslow TW3 3EB Open to Public
CONSERVATIVE COUNCILLOR SURGERIES
Chiswick: Every Saturday from 9.30am to 10.30am at Chiswick Library (the eight Conservative councillors take this surgery in turn).
Gunnersbury: First Saturday of the month from 10am to 11am at The Gunnersbury Triangle Club, Triangle Way, off The Ridgeway, W3 8LU (at least one of the Chiswick Gunnersbury ward councillors takes this surgery).
CONSERVATIVE COUNCILLORS and CONTACTS
Chiswick Gunnersbury (was Turnham Green) ward
Cllr Joanna Biddolph joanna.biddolph@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 703446
Cllr Ranjit Gill ranjit.gill@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 702956
Cllr Ron Mushiso ron.mushiso@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 702887
Chiswick Homefields ward
Cllr Jack Emsley jack.emsley@hounslow.gov.uk 07977 396017
Cllr Gerald McGregor gerald.mcgregor@hounslow.gov.uk 07866 784821
Cllr John Todd john.todd@hounslow.gov.uk 07866 784651
Chiswick Riverside ward
Cllr Gabriella Giles gabriella.giles@hounslow.gov.uk 07966 270823
Cllr Peter Thompson peter.thompson@hounslow.gov.uk 07977 395810
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We've always done that and won't be changing, in fact we'd like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we'd be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you'd like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |