Britain's government will have more than double its previous buffer for meeting its fiscal targets, due in large part to tax rises, according to estimates by the country's fiscal watchdog published on its website ahead of finance minister Rachel Reeves' budget statement.

London

British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves announced a series of tax increases in her budget plan, affecting workers, pension savers, and investors. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) reported that these measures will more than double the government's fiscal headroom to £22 billion over five years, despite a reduction in economic growth forecasts.

Key elements of the budget include a prolonged freeze on income tax thresholds, higher income tax rates, and increased taxes on dividends, property, and savings income. The OBR's early release of the budget revealed these changes ahead of Reeves' official speech, and initial market reactions indicated investor comfort with the plan.

UK's Reeves hikes taxes in budget plan to boost fiscal buffer

British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves hiked taxes in her budget plan on Wednesday. Workers, people saving for a pension and investors will all pay more tax to help Reeves meet borrowing targets. The country's fiscal watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility, or OBR, cut its forecasts for growth in the British economy over the coming years. But in a closely watched moment for markets, it said the government will now have more than double its previous headroom for meeting its fiscal targets, even as it raises spending on welfare. The headroom refers to the amount of extra spending or tax cuts possible for the government while staying within its budget rules. The OBR said it now stood at roughly £22bn or $28.9bn in five years' time. It had forecast roughly around $11bn earlier this year, a historically low level. The result was in large part due to more than £26bn or $34.4bn of fresh tax rises. Finance Minister Rachel Reeves. No doubt we will face opposition again, but I have yet to see a credible or a fairer alternative plan for working people. A fall in borrowing costs suggested investors were largely comfortable with the budget plan. The OBR had mistakenly released the budget before Reeves had given her speech, which Reuss has first reported. It revealed the key announcements from the budget on taxes, economic growth and individual policy changes. Reeves had promised to take fair and necessary choices to improve the country and to speed up economic growth, but she also recognised unhappiness among voters. Some key details in her plan include a longer freeze on the thresholds at which people start to pay income tax and a higher rate of income tax. The generosity of pension incentives was scaled back with Social Security charges on salary sacrifice pension contributions, raising around $6.5bn. There will also be higher tax rates on dividends, property and savings income. The authority of Reeves and Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been questioned within the centre-left Labour Party. Reeves said in her first budget last year she was returning stability to public finances. That after the shocks delivered by Brexit, the pandemic and the mini-budget crisis of former Conservative Prime Minister Liz Truss.

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