Andy Burnham, Steve Rotheram and business leaders from across the North West have reacted to Chancellor Rishi Sunak's Spring Statement.
In his speech to the House of Commons, Mr Sunak linked the strengthening of the 海角视频 economy to opposing Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. He also set out the 海角视频's sanctions on Russia - and said he was "proud" to stand with Ukraine.
However, the Chancellor said the actions the 海角视频 had taken were not "cost free at home".
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The Chancellor warned inflation could rise to 7.4% this year but he promised the government would "support the British people". The three immediate measures he announced included:
- Fuel duty being cut by 5p a litre across the country until March next year.
- For the next five years homeowners having energy saving materials installed, such as solar panels or heat pumps, will pay zero VAT.
- Doubling the household support fund to £1bn with £500m of new funding - with local authorities to receive funding from April.
He said: "It present a rift to our recovery... we came into this crisis knowing the economy was growing faster than expected but the Office for Budget Responsibility has said there is unusually high uncertainty around the outlook.
Mr Sunak also addressed a crisis at home, referencing the importance of "more resilient" public finances and said the Government would help with the cost of living.
"Today's statement builds a stronger economy for the United Kingdom," said Mr Sunak.
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"We can only afford to provide extra support because of our stronger economy," he added.
Mr Sunak has also raised the national insurance threshold. He said he would increase the threshold by £3,000 in 2021. From July people will be able to earn £12,570 without paying income tax or national insurance - a £6bn personal tax cut he said.
He also promised to "reform the generosity" of tax credits on the money private firms spend on R&D. And he said he would cut tax rates on business investment, adding that details would be outlined in the Autumn Budget.
From April, the Employment Allowance will also increase to £5,000 and Mr Sunak said he would cut the basic rate of income tax from 20p to 19p by the end of the current Parliament.
"Cutting taxes is not easy, it requires hard work, prioritisation and willingness to make unpopular arguments elsewhere," he added.
Following the announcement, mayors and business leaders from around the North West shared their thoughts.
Andy Burnham
The mayor of Greater Manchester said: "I'm certain that there are many things here that will bring benefits and there are welcome moves that will help people with the cost of living crisis.
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"The ones that are most obviously going to help people in the short term are the 5p cut in fuel duty and the raising of the threshold of national insurance, equalising that with income tax. That will clearly benefit many people.
"But, it seems to me that he has chosen to help some people with the cost of living crisis but has decided against helping all people.
"I listen carefully but I didn't hear that there was any real help being provided for people on benefits, people who have that low fixed income.
"They are already, I would say, the most at risk from the cost of living crisis because their income is low and fixed.
"I did not hear any significant support for people in that position and that is why I will be bringing forward my own package of measures to support people with the cost of living crisis, particularly those on the lowest incomes.
"It was clear that the Chancellor had chosen to prioritise some people with the cost of travel, but not all.
"He had prioritised motorists but has not done much, if anything, for those people who can't afford to run a car and are reliant on public transport.
"If you look at the North of England, what you will find is that there are more people living here who can't afford to run a car and are reliant on public transport.
"But there are also more people here who are dependent on benefits for their income, either in work or our of work.
"Therefore if you put those two factors together and you consider what the Chancellor has announced, you can't come to anything other than the conclusion that this is a package that will not close regional inequality and possibly could see it widening over the course of this year."
Steve Rotheram
The Mayor of the Liverpool City Region said: "I know that it is difficult for a multi-millionaire Chancellor to be able to empathise with ordinary people – but this Spring Statement shows a complete lack of empathy.
"Millions of people across the country face a worrying year ahead as the cost of living crisis starts to bite. With energy prices rising, fuel prices rising, the cost of food and other essentials rising, and inflation at its highest point in 30 years, they were looking to him today to offer them a helping hand.
"Instead, he is piling on the pressure, offering no help to ordinary people and putting yet more pressure onto increasingly desperate families. Today’s lack of action will only push more people below the poverty line.
"When some Tory MPs start to worry that the Chancellor is not doing enough, you know things are very serious.
"It didn’t have to be this way. Labour’s plans for a windfall tax on oil and gas producer profits could have helped cut energy bills by £600. Once again, this government has shown it is more interested in helping its billionaire friends than working people.
"The government’s decisions today mean that this is not just a cost of living crisis, but the price of the Conservatives – and we’re the ones picking up the tab."
Bibby Financial Services
Chief executive Jonathan Andrew said: "Rishi Sunak’s spring statement has gone some way to address the concerns of the 海角视频’s 5.6 million small to medium sized businesses but recovery for many will be extremely hard to navigate.
"It is still the case, that while praised for being the beating heart of the economy, SMEs face being starved of the lifeblood they need to survive.
"In particular, National Insurance increases will come directly from the bottom line, and for many businesses this will be a step too far.
"And although a cut in fuel prices, and increase to Employment Allowances will provide some relief, this may not go far enough to offset other significant price hikes.
"Our customers, made up of 7,000 SMEs across the 海角视频, tell us they are worried. Worried about going under at a time when we need small businesses to prosper.
"And our own analysis highlights how volatile the economic landscape is for SMEs; turnover data suggests sales are rising but not strongly enough to provide SMEs with confidence and optimism, and with borrowing rising in February too, clearly businesses are feeling the squeeze as cost of living, inflation, and supply chain costs mount.
"Amid a global pandemic, an international emergency in Ukraine, Brexit regulations and bureaucracy, SMEs are being forced to make tough decisions to survive.
"While today’s statement goes some way to protect SMEs as they continue to weather this storm, unless the Government puts these businesses front and centre of its economic policy, survival - let alone recovery - just won’t be tenable for thousands of businesses."
BDO
Ed Dwan, partner and head of the North West, said: "As well as announcements to help families with the cost of living, the Chancellor set the scene for an overhaul of Britain’s corporate tax system to boost business investment and improve the 海角视频’s economic growth prospects.
"He has announced he will consult with businesses over the summer about potential changes which would be introduced at a Budget later this year.
"Themes in focus were capital, skills and ideas with the hint of new incentives for investment as the existing super deduction relief is currently due to end in 2023.
"This may be extended or expanded in its use, which would be well received in the region. A third of companies surveyed in BDO’s most recent Rethinking the Economy research have already taken advantage of the super deduction incentive. Overall, he was clear that businesses will be encouraged to invest for growth.
"Today’s statement also highlighted plans to improve the apprenticeship levy, to ensure it is incentivising employers to deliver the right kind of training to boost productivity.
"If he gets this right, this would be popular with business leaders who consistently tell us that being able to recruit enough talent with the right skills is the greatest barrier to growth."
Liverpool Chamber
Chief executive Paul Cherpeau said: "As businesses in the Liverpool City Region face up to a mounting burden of financial pressures, today’s statement will provide some welcome relief, but the Chancellor could have done more to reassure businesses.
"It’s certainly encouraging to see the government focussing on encouraging private sector innovation through improved R&D incentives and greater investment in training to close the skills and productivity gap.
"Reforming the apprenticeship levy to make sure it’s effective and the increase in the employment allowance up to £5,000 should help SMEs to build for the future with greater optimism.
"The year-long 5p cut in fuel duty may offer some comfort to transport and logistics operators albeit for only a short time, but the level of impact across the business base is questionable, particularly if the base cost of fuel continues to rise. It won’t insulate businesses from the rising costs, but it should soften the blow a little.
"It is unclear whether the increase in the national insurance threshold will benefit employers as well as employees.
"If the threshold for businesses’ contributions is also to be higher, those with high numbers of lower-paid or part-time staff will welcome the opportunity to limit their expenses, although the planned overall increase in National Insurance will still adversely affect people’s spending power across the board amid rising costs elsewhere."
"Our tourist attractions and hospitality venues will be highly concerned to see the 12.5% VAT rate expire in April. This lower rate has been the catalyst for many to survive over the past two years and it would have provided further breathing space as they tackle a period of uncertainty.
"We are also disappointed that the government has not pledged to do more for those energy intensive businesses, while our calls have also been ignored for a moratorium for the life of this parliament on all policy measures that increase business costs.
"For firms to create jobs and provide the stronger economy the Chancellor says he wants to build, they need to feel confident about doing business today and investing for tomorrow. This announcement feels like a missed opportunity to truly drive home that message of reassurance from central government."
FSB
Michael Sandys, FSB Merseyside and Cheshire area leader (Liverpool City Region), said: "We are very pleased to see the Chancellor adopting our top ask for this Spring Statement: uprating the Employment Allowance to help small employers with national insurance costs.
"We originally put forward the Employment Allowance as a targeted measure to help small firms, and it has now been expanded three times since its creation.
"Together with a cut to fuel duty, these measures will provide crucial breathing space for our embattled small employers.
"This Spring Statement marks a good starting point, with welcome measures on business rates, net zero and energy investment taking effect next month.
"With steep inflation, energy bills increasing fast, without the same support in place as enjoyed by consumers, and hiring pressures landing hard on small firms, more of the right stuff will be needed in the autumn given this challenging backdrop.
"We’ve seen a VAT cut on net zero investments for households today, which is good for small firms involved in their installation.
"However, a high street shop or local bar cannot access the same support that consumers do when dealing with the same energy supplier, and they should have access to the same assistance to reduce energy use and support the move to net zero.
"We look forward to working with the Chancellor on his new tax plan. Achieving the new culture of enterprise vision he rightly aspires to, alongside levelling up aspirations, will mean putting community small firms and sole traders front and centre of reforms.
"That means taking more of them out of the business rates system, protecting SME R&D investment incentives and delivering on commitments to end an endemic late payment culture that destroys thousands of firms a year."
WNJ
Associate partner Matthew Johnson said: "Little of what the chancellor announced today will immediately ease the pain being felt by SMEs squeezed by rising prices. In many ways it has added to the uncertainty.
"The fact that he did not scrap the 1.25 per cent hike in National Insurance contributions (NIC) scheduled for April 1, was particularly disappointing for SMEs facing the challenges caused by rising inflation, soaring energy bills and the impact of war in Ukraine.
"The cut in fuel duty is to be welcomed and will help businesses, particularly those with high transport costs.
"The announcement that Employment Allowance will increase to £5,000, which the chancellor described as a tax cut worth up to £1,000 for half a million SMEs, is also a positive move.
"No doubt the headlines will all be about the cut in basic income tax to 19p by 2024. However, businesses are left waiting for the details of the chancellor’s new ‘tax plan’ to emerge, and many of those won’t be revealed until the autumn.
"The Chancellor has pledged to work with businesses over summer to explore options to help the private sector.
"We need to see what the reform of tax credits on the money private businesses spend on research and development will look like. Also, the plans to cut tax rates on business investment, with details again to be set out at the autumn Budget.
"Employment training will also be reviewed as part of the new tax plan. This will include assessing whether the apprenticeship levy which pays for skills training - is 'doing enough'. Once again, we will have to wait and see what that will look like and if it will benefit SMEs."
British Chambers of Commerce
Director general Shevaun Haviland said: "The Spring Statement falls short of the action businesses needed to see today. While there are some positive announcements that firms will welcome, it did not fundamentally address the huge cost pressures they are facing.
"Businesses will be pleased that the employment allowance has been increased. This long running ask of the BCC will provide a small amount of financial headroom for firms facing rising costs.
"But today was a missed opportunity to rebuild and renew the economy and ensure business has the resilience to weather the uncertain and volatile times ahead.
"The cut in fuel duty, though very welcome, is just a drop in the ocean compared to the larger tsunami of surging costs that is bearing down on firms and households. Smaller businesses are particularly exposed as they have neither the protections or financial support provided to households, nor the negotiating power of larger businesses.
"As the economic outlook is likely to get worse before it gets better, many firms will be forced to continue raising prices, further fuelling the cost-of-living crisis.
"We urge the government to take further action – including the introduction of an SME energy price cap - to tackle the escalating cost of doing business crisis. Firms need the headroom to keep a lid on prices, protect jobs and make investment that is so vital to sustaining our economic prospects."
Aaron and Partners
Transport partner Tim Culpin said: "Much has been said about the impact on consumers with rising fuel prices, but the 海角视频's fleet and leasing industry will have also welcomed the news of a cut in fuel duty by 5p until March 2023, meaning savings of hundreds of pounds for van drivers and hauliers.
"The Chancellor had been under increasing pressure to announce something in this area with fuel costs at record highs, so there will be hope that this move helps to bring more certainty on the cost of petrol and diesel, at least in the short term.
"Another area the sector would have been watching with interest was the possibility of alternative forms of taxation, with the government suggesting that it may one day move beyond Fuel Duty entirely. This would be in large part due to the increasing uptake of electric vehicles, and there was speculation that a review or consultation might be announced.
"The government confirmed at the end of last year that all new heavy goods vehicles in the 海角视频 will need to be zero-emission by 2040, so the sector as a whole is bracing itself for change. However, no detail has been announced yet, so this is an area that many will still be watching with interest."
Inquesta
Insolvency practitioner and senior manager Steven Mason said: "The 海角视频 economy is in a precarious place, with relatively small changes to the economic outlook likely to impact businesses across the 海角视频.
"That was the view of Rishi Sunak during his Spring Statement. The chancellor says in the next financial year the 海角视频 is forecast to spend £83bn on debt interest - and that's why the government has had to take 'difficult decisions with the public finances'.
"There was therefore no delay or postponement to the planned national insurance rise, or a windfall tax on oil or energy companies.
"Instead, the headline announcement was saved to last, that before the end of this Parliament in 2024, for the first time in 16 years the basic rate of income tax will be cut, from 20p to 19p in the pound.
"As widely predicted, the Chancellor confirmed a cut in fuel duty, although the cut of 5p per litre may not be as generous as it seems. As petrol and diesel prices rise, so do government receipts. The government will still be making more per litre in tax than it did a year ago. Businesses in need of fuel will still be at the mercy of worldwide events.
"The Chancellor introduced very little in terms of new measures for small businesses, choosing instead to focus on ones announced in his last Budget, such as the 50 per cent business rates discount for retail, hospitality and leisure properties.
"However, one welcome boost of note was the announcement that the employment allowance is to be increased to £5,000, worth up to £1,000 for half a million small businesses.
"With inflation now set to hit 7.4% by the end of the year, it is possible the views from small businesses will echo those of one rowdy Labour MP who asked: 'Is that it?'."
Hurst
Tax partner Adrian Young said: "The Chancellor’s Spring Statement was an interesting set of measures for unusual times.
"Some key initiatives were announced as part of Mr Sunak’s 'Tax Plan' to deal with the cost of living crisis, driven in part by the Ukrainian war, and manifesting itself in the highest inflation rate in 30 years.
"Three measures in particular stand out: the anticipated 5p per litre reduction in fuel duty, the increase in the threshold at which national insurance contributions become payable, and a future potential 1p reduction in the basic rate of income tax.
"Looking at these in turn, the fuel duty reduction will no doubt be welcome. But, with forecourt prices fluctuating wildly, it remains to be seen whether this reduction actually makes its way fully into pump prices.
"The increase in the threshold at which national insurance contributions kick in should have a more measurable benefit. Interestingly, it’s only now that the national insurance threshold has been aligned with the income tax threshold, thereby also rectifying a long-standing anomaly in the 海角视频 tax system.
"What remains to be seen, however, is whether the benefits from the increase in the threshold are eroded, or even entirely negated, by the simultaneous 1.25 per cent increase in the Health and Social Care Levy.
"As a result, the change in the threshold may end up more like the softening of an overall increase in tax, rather than an actual reduction.
"A 1p reduction in income tax by the end of this parliament will no doubt be seen in a positive light. Mr Sunak didn’t appear to make a firm commitment to the reduction.
"Rather, I think it should be seen more as a keenly held objective of the Chancellor’s and which he may deliver depending on economic (and no doubt political) circumstances. Time will tell whether this comes to fruition."