Insight Newsletters

Newsletter 10th April 2024

As the clock ticked down to the 2024 Budget, the old-fashioned concept of ‘Budget  purdah’ was well and truly buried under a steady release of leaks. Nevertheless, Budget Day still contained a few meaningful surprises.

Spring Budget Tax Tables 2024/25

In what was widely expected to be Jeremy Hunt’s final budget ahead of an Election, speculation in the final run up focused on the trade-offs that might be required around cutting taxes and meeting both fiscal rules and spending commitments.

Click the image above to see the changes in tax in more detail.

Spring Budget 2024

Many of the announcements made by the Chancellor will have a significant impact on our personal finances. The additional cut to class 1 national insurance contribution (NIC) rates to 8% will see take home pay go up, while the class 4 self-employed rate also sees a reduction. 

Many key allowances and thresholds, however, remain frozen, so understanding the effects of existing tax levels and new measures announced in 2024/25 are key to your planning. We at Wealth Professional will be delighted to discuss any of these announcements that may impact you.

Tax Allowances

Taxpayers are on track to pay £40bn by 2028 as a result of the freeze on personal tax thresholds. But most taxpayers don’t understand how ‘fiscal drag’ works or the real impact of the frozen allowances. For example, according to Resolution Foundation, someone earning £50,000 will pay an extra £9,000 over the six years of the threshold freeze, compared with if the threshold had been increased in line with inflation. Here are 7 allowances to consider using before the tax year ends. 

Autumn Statement Tax Tables 2024/25

The Autumn Statement was expected to focus on longer term issues facing the country, but Mr Hunt decided to prioritise short-term tax cuts over maintaining future expenditure. Click on the image above to see the tax changes in detail.

Newsletter 20th December 2023

Footsie at 40 - taking the long view

Next year the FTSE100 – an index of the largest companies listed on the UK stock market - will be 40 years old. What can its history reveal about long-term investing? Click to download...