Budget 2018 - LIVE: Hammond announces end to PFI and ploughs extra £1bn into troubled universal credit
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Your support makes all the difference.Philip Hammond has reiterated Theresa May's claim that the era of austerity is "finally coming to an end" in his last pre-Brexit Budget.
The chancellor unveiled a new "UK digital services tax" aimed at tech giants, which are profitable and generate at least £500m a year in global revenues.
Promising a Budget for "Britain's future", Mr Hammond also earmarked an extra £1bn for the Ministry of Defence and set out the government's plan for the NHS, including £2bn per year for mental health services.
In addition, he said the government would never sign another private finance initiative (PFI) deal, long criticised for locking the taxpayer into hugely expensive infrastructure contracts that enrich private firms.
He also promised an additional £1bn for the implementation of universal credit, which also faces widespread criticism for pushing vulnerable people into homelessness and food bank dependency.
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Corbyn has a dig at the government's 'bungled Brexit' approach and says there is no way Theresa May can get a deal when the cabinet can't even agree amongst themselves.
He calls for a proper end to austerity.
And that's it from Mr Corbyn now.
Treasury committee chair Nicky Morgan is up now, and jokes that it must be something she said - as everyone has let the Chamber.
She says Philip Hammond was in a difficult position and chastised Jeremy Corbyn for not putting forward any new ideas.
Caroline Lucas, Green MP, intervenes to ask why the chancellor has not mentioned climate change?
Morgan says he did and dismisses the question. She gives the government a hard time on Brexit, saying it is vital for the government to give MPs enough information on the deal so they can make an informed choice.
Here's the latest on universal credit from my colleague Ashley Cowburn.
Announcing the funds in the Budget, the chancellor bowed to intense pressure from charities and cross-party politicians, who have repeatedly raised alarming issues with the government's flagship welfare programme.
Treasury sources said OBR figures had improved because there is expected to be lower unemployment which would lead to an increase in taxes, as well as much stronger tax receipts and slightly lower spending, particularly as a result of lower debt interest on bonds.
Mr Hammond did not fix the spending envelope for the next review period because there is a chance it could improve as a result of the so-called Brexit deal dividend, sources said.
One interesting bit I missed from earlier was the national living wage is to increase from £7.83 to £8.21 an hour for workers aged 25 and over next April, an above inflation rise of 4.9%.
The Chancellor also announced that the minimum wage for other age groups will also go up - from £7.38 to £7.70 for 21-24 year olds, from £5.90 to £6.15 for 18-20 year olds and from £4.20 to £4.35 for 16-17 year olds.
The statutory rate for apprentices aged under 19 or in the first year of their apprenticeship will increase by 20p an hour to £3.90.
My colleague Ben Kentish has written up one of the key lines from the Budget - a new tax on tech giants as he demanded multi-billion pound companies "pay their fair share".
Read his piece here:
Another stand-out story - Philip Hammond has announced a new tax on the manufacture and import of plastic packaging that contains less than 30 per cent recycled plastic.
Our environment correspondent Josh Gabbatiss has taken a look at the small print.
Philip Hammond also pledged not to sign any more PFI deals, which he described as a "classic Labour solution; pouring good money after bad."
Ben Chapman, the Independent's business reporter, has written this piece:
Fab picture from PA's chief political photographer ahead of the Budget.
Reaction is pouring into the Chancellor's words.
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell has said that the pledge to end austerity was "a broken promise, like the whole budget:
“It is now clear austerity is not over, the cuts to social security will continue and Philip Hammond gave no assurances that departments won’t face further cuts," he said.
“Eight years of destructive austerity has damaged our economy, damaged people’s incomes and damaged our essential services. There is nothing in today’s budget to repair the damage to schools, the police and local councils.
“The money promised for Universal Credit is less than a third of the £7bn of social security cuts still to come and today’s announcement on work allowances reverses just over half the cuts made in 2015.
“While hitting those most vulnerable in our society, the Tories will have handed out £110bn in corporate tax giveaways by the end of this parliament.
“This is immoral and Labour will end this unfairness, end austerity and rebuild Britain for the many, not the few.”
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