Personal taxes – A quiet day as the Chancellor hunts for growth: Spring Budget

Tom Evennett, EY UK&I Private Client Services Leader, comments on the Budget’s implications for personal taxation

“As anticipated, it was a quiet Budget for personal tax measures, with no changes to the already-announced tax rates and thresholds across income tax and capital gains allowances. There were a couple more freezes announced to thresholds for the 2023-24 tax year, including those to the starting rate for savings at £5,000 and the ISA allowances (£20,000 for adults and £9,000 for Junior ISAs per year). There was also some help for hard-pressed families on energy in the form of maintaining the 5p reduction in fuel duty, no RPI increase in fuel duty, plus the extension of the Energy Price Guarantee at £2,500 until 30 June 2023. This latter move will cost the Chancellor nearly £8bn next year.

“The other significant cost – as the Chancellor hunts for growth by attracting individuals back to the workforce after parental leave – was the extension of free childcare to working parents of children aged 9 months to three years old. There were also changes around the removal of UK tax reliefs, which had previously been extended by EU law and which may affect individuals: charitable reliefs will only apply to UK charities from April 2023, while and EU/EEA charities will no longer qualify for UK charity reliefs; and from an inheritance tax perspective, only agricultural property and woodlands in the UK would potentially qualify for relief, whereas previously land in the EEA was also eligible.”