Considering the new Labour Government has been keen to lay down its budget against a background of a collapsing NHS, failing public services and creaking transport infrastructure, it’s no surprise that the media, creative and tech industries weren’t front and centre of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ debut with the red briefcase.
There were a few nuggets to pick out from her first Autumn budget, however, although many details could benefit from some additional fleshing out, which we’ll hopefully get over the coming days.
In the tech sector, Reeves promised to protect government investment in research and development “to unlock these growth industries of the future…from gigafactories to ports to green hydrogen” with more than £20bn of funding.
The chancellor added that it will include at least £6.1bn to protect core research funding for areas like engineering, biotechnology and medical science.
Reeves also confirmed nearly £1bn for the aerospace sector, over £2bn for the automotive sector and up to £520m for a new national Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund.
In TV and film, Reeves committed to an as yet unspecified tax relief for VFX work for TV and film, and promised £25m of government funding for the Sunderland CrownWorks Studio project, which the chancellor claimed would create 8,000 new jobs in the North East.
Reeves also promised increased regional independence from Westminster on funding for mayors in the regions. The Chancellor didn’t offer too much detail of what this would mean, but stated that Greater Manchester and the West Midlands will be the first mayoral authorities to receive integrated settlements from next year, and claimed the move would give mayors “meaningful control of the funding for their local areas.”
Elsewhere, there were the predicted rises to employers’ NI contributions by 1.2%, with support promised for smaller employers, a surprise end to the freeze on personal income tax thresholds from 2028, an extension to the freeze on fuel duty, a near-7% rise in the national minimum wage, a claimed £22.6bn jump in “day-to-day” NHS spending, support to encourage EV adoption, and promises to improve public transport infrastructure in the North.
In other budget news, Reeves promised that a cut in duty on draught alcohol will mean “a penny off the pints in the pubs,” although non-draught products will increase in line with the RPI, along with the continuation of relief measures to assist the retail and hospitality sectors.
The chancellor said her budget will raise an additional £40bn, increase government spending by £70bn, and begin to undo “14 years of damage” caused by her Conservative predecessors’ austerity policies, albeit with the very useful caveat that she can’t do it all “in one go.”
