Chancellor brings forward Autumn Budget 2018 date

Chancellor, Philip Hammond has announced the date for the Autumn Budget 2018. The UK Government’s last tax and spending proposals before the UK leaves the EU will be held on Monday 29th October.

The Chancellor has opted to move forward the Autumn Budget 2018 - which is historically held in November and on a Wednesday - to allow parliament more time to debate the Budget measures prior to the Commons’ recess on 6th November.

According to a Treasury spokesman, the new Budget 2018 date is also a better fit around ministerial availability and official data releases.

The Treasury said in a statement: “This will set out the government’s plan to build a stronger, more prosperous, economy, building on the recent spring statement and last year’s budget.”

The Chancellor said in a tweet that his Autumn Budget 2018 speech will “set out how [his] balanced approach is getting debt falling while supporting our vital public services”.

The autumn budget is now the most significant day in the UK financial calendar, with the Chancellor previously opting to abolish spring budgets and autumn statements in November 2016.

Mr Hammond’s reasoning was that “no other major economy makes hundreds of tax changes twice a year, and neither should we”.

What can we can expect from next month’s Autumn Budget 2018?

Many people are waiting with baited breath to discover how the Chancellor plans to fund giving the NHS an additional £20 billion a year by 2023.

The UK’s small business community will be hoping the Chancellor does not hit businesses with additional cuts to the tax-free dividend allowance for company directors and investors.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has already implored the Treasury to leave the dividend allowance – cut from £5,000 to £2,000 a year in the 2017 Budget – alone.

Private sector contractors will also be waiting to hear the outcome of a recent consultation into off-payroll working, with some reports suggesting that IR35 reforms could extend from the public sector into the private sector.

To keep up-to-date with the most pertinent issues affecting your small business in the Autumn Budget 2018, make sure you bookmark our budget report page. This will feature a detailed summary of the announcements and proposals relating to the UK’s growing army of small businesses.

Date published 27 Sep 2018 | Last updated 27 Sep 2018