Ireland

Main points of today's UK budget:

All figures quoted below are in sterling

Wed Mar 07 2001 - 00:00

All figures quoted below are in sterling

INCOME TAX

  • £1 billion a year tax cut, with the band of income taxed at 10p raised from £1,520 to £1,880.

SCHOOLS

  • Primary school head teachers will receive £13,000 with larger primaries receiving £63,000 in extra funding.
  • Secondary schools to get £68,000 and larger ones £115,000.

HEALTH

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  • Hospital trusts to get between £500,000 and £1 million extra each year for three years.
  • Extra £135 million to recruit NHS staff.

FUEL

  • Duty on ultra low sulphur petrol cut by 2p a litre.
  • 2p cut to unleaded petrol until June when supplies of ultra low sulphur petrol will be more widely available.
  • 3p off ultra low sulphur diesel.
  • Duty on alternative fuels will be cut and duty on road fuel gases will be frozen until 2004.

PENSIONERS

  • Chancellor confirmed increases of £5 for single pensioners and £8 for couples in the state pension.
  • Pensioners' tax allowances will be linked to earnings from 2003.

ECONOMY

  • Budget to put families first.
  • Lowest inflation for 30 years.
  • Economic growth was 3 per cent in 2000.
  • Inflation forecast to be 2.5 per cent in 2002 - 2.5 per cent to remain inflation target.
  • National debt forecast to fall to 30.3 per cent in 2001/2.
  • Debt interest payments in 2001-02 will be £1.5 billion lower than forecast in November, and £3.5 billion lower overall.

INVESTMENT

  • Government accepts Myners Report on pension fund investment policies allowing funds to invest in wider range of assets.
  • Consultation on Corporation Tax.
  • The UK will help set up a fund for global health developing new life-saving drugs and making existing drugs more widely available.
  • New tax credit for drug companies.
  • Long term Capital Gains Tax rate cut to 10p.
  • VAT returns to be based on annual company accounts.
  • The VAT threshhold is raised to £54,000 for small business, and there will be a proposed lower rate for firms with a turnover of up to £100,000.

SPENDING

  • Public spending to increase by 3.7% a year by 2003-04.

CAR TAX

  • All vehicle duty rates frozen.
  • Lower tax for cars under 1.5 litres backdated to November - 70% of new cars to pay lower car tax.
  • Vehicle excise duty abolished on tractors from April.

DRINK

  • Duty on wine, beer and spirits frozen.

TOBACCO

  • 6p rise on cigarettes.

BETTING

  • Betting duty abolished.

URBAN REGENERATION

  • £1 billion tax cuts to aid urban regeneration.
  • Stamp Duty will be abolished in designated areas, VAT on residential conversions will be cut to 5%, there will be 150% tax relief to clean contaminated land, and there will be allowances to renovate empty flats.
  • New grant to help church repairs.

EMPLOYMENT

  • More cash for training for ex-drug addicts.
  • Lone parents required to have interviews about work from 2002.
  • Families on Working Families Tax Credit to receive rise of £5 a week.
  • Disabled Persons Tax Credit raised by £5 a week.
  • More help with child care for working families. Childcare tax credit to rise to £135 a week for one child, £200 a week for two or more.

MUSEUMS

  • VAT to be changed to give free museum entrance.
  • All figures quoted below are Sterling

INHERITANCE TAX

  • The threshhold for Inheritance Tax will be raised to £242,000.

FAMILIES

  • New children's tax credit to be introduced in April and paid at £10 a week.
  • Maternity pay to be increased from £60 to £100 a week in 2003. Also extended from 18 weeks to 2003
  • Two weeks paid paternity leave.
  • Child tax credit for families with new babies to be set at a higher level.

DRUGS

  • New three year budget of more than £200 million to combat drugs problems.