Autumn Statement FAQs - what you need to know

The Autumn Statement is an update from the government, covering their plans for the economy based on the latest forecast from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). It covers a review of the public finances and whether the government will meet its own fiscal objectives.

The Chancellor announced his Autumn Statement 2023 on 22 November at 12:30. 

The Autumn statement took place at 12:30 PM GMT

The Chancellor presented his Autumn Statement on 22 November and promised a raft of growth measures including:

• From January 2024 there will be a reduction of 2% in employee national insurance contributions from 12% to 10%.
• Class 2 National Insurance Contributions for the self-employed are to be abolished, simplifying tax administration and saving around 2 million individuals £192 a year. The Class 4 National Insurance Contribution main rate will be reduced by 1% to 8% from 6 April 2024.
• The introduction of the pensions ‘pot for life’ means an employee will have the right to choose which pension scheme their contributions will be made to instead of being auto-enrolled into the employer’s scheme.
• The National Living Wage is set to increase from £10.42 to £11.44 per hour, this is the largest ever increase to the minimum wage in cash terms worth over £1,800 to full-time workers.
• The current full expensing relief introduced in the spring 2023 budget is to be made permanent.
• The Affordable Homes Guarantee Scheme will have a £3 billion increase, aimed at delivering 20,000 new homes, as well as improving the quality and efficiency of other houses.

The Scottish budget announcement will be presented to the Scottish Parliament on 19 December.

The last Budget was the Spring 2023 Budget where Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced a ‘Budget for Growth’. Headline takeaways included funding for childcare, keeping the energy price cap, income tax threshold freezes, extension of some business tax reliefs, and pensions and benefits overhauls. Find out more in our Spring Budget 2023: impacts and analysis.

2022 gave us 3 Prime Ministers and 4 Chancellors. Jeremy Hunt was appointed on 14 October 2022.

In the last Autumn Statement in November 2022, the Chancellor (Jeremy Hunt) aimed to cut spending and increase the tax take. He raised taxes mainly through threshold freezes and also made investments in energy efficiency, infrastructure and targeted support for businesses. Please see a summary of the changes here.

The next general election could take at any time before January 2025. The current parliament will dissolve on December 17 2024 as this will be when the maximum five-year term will end.