This week, the Chancellor delivered a Budget that puts the next generation first – a Budget to make Britain fit for the future. The British economy is stronger because the Conservatives confronted the country’s problems and took the difficult decisions, but now face the challenge of a dangerous cocktail of global risks. Britain is well prepared to handle this challenge, but only if action is taken now.
Too many young people in their 20s and 30s have no pension and few savings. To help them, the Government is introducing a new Lifetime ISA for under 40s with a 25 per cent bonus paid by the Government. The ISA limit is going up to £20,000 and increasing tax relief on financial advice for everyone, while income taxes for over 31 million people are cut. Young people should not have to choose between saving for their first home and saving for retirement, so the Conservatives are going to help them do both.
The Budget for London
Specifically for London, the Chancellor announced:
- £80 million to push forward Crossrail 2 and begin working up the scheme in detail.
- Support for the expansion of the Royal College of Art’s Battersea Campus, where inventor Sir James Dyson and film director Sir Ridley Scott once studied.
- £15 million to develop a ‘Connected Corridor’ on the A2-M2 from London to Dover as part of a major roads innovation package.
- The green light for a new Thameslink Station at Brent Cross.
- Further commitment to help transfer the 10 hectares of land around Old Oak Common station (located between Harlesden and East Acton) Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation – an area which has the potential to be one of the most significant regeneration sites in the country over the next decade, as the only place in the country where HS2, Great Western and Crossrail meet.
- £5 million for a new Outer London Infrastructure Fund to support smaller local infrastructure project in outer London boroughs
- Support for Transport for London’s plans to generate revenue from its property by, for example, unlocking land under road tunnels at Hammersmith and Barking for development.
- Confirmation of a new Thames Estuary 2050 Growth Commission which will produce an ambitious vision for the development of East London, North Kent and South Essex.
- Support for the British Library’s vision to develop its central London site and adjacent property including the Alan Turing Institute.
- Additionally, 133 museums in London will also be able to claim a new corporation tax relief for museums and galleries from 1 April 2017.
- £5 million from banking fines for the National Mesothelioma Centre, to help set up a research centre in the terminal condition which has direct consequences for Service personnel and Veterans.