Autumn statement: George Osborne's speech in full
The Chancellor has been laying out his spending plans at the House of Commons
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Your support makes all the difference.From a U-turn on tax credits to a slashing in spending on transport, environment and energy - and an increase in the defence budget - George Osborne's Autumn Statement and Spending Review has been decidedly mixed.
Here are some of the headlines:
- Tax credits: Planned £4.4bn tax credit cuts to be abandoned, with extra borrowing to make up for the shortfall for the first few years. Rates for child tax credits and working tax credits remain the same.
- Housing: Stamp duty to increase by 3 per cent for second home and buy-to-let buyers. A pledge to build 400,000 affordable new homes by 2020, with a new Help to Buy scheme introduced in London.
- Social care: Up to 2 per cent to be levied by local authorities through council tax.
- Policing: No real-time cuts in police budgets in England, but forces will have to pool resources.
- Education: University maintenance grants to be replaced by loans.
- Health: NHS budget to rise to £120bn by 2020-2021.
Read George Osborne's full Autumn Statement here.
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