[Sticks]

This summary from the BBC Website


Budget 2002: At-a-glance

The main points of Chancellor Gordon Brown's 2002 Budget


Tax
1p in the pound increase in National Insurance contributions across the board

Freeze on road tax

Freeze on fuel duty

6p on a packet of cigarettes

Freeze on beer, spirits and wine duty


Duty halved for small brewers - equivalent of 14p off a pint in time for this summer's World Cup

Alcopops to be taxed at the same rate as spirits

Bingo players exempt from tax


Health spending
43% rise in NHS spending over next five years


Health spending to increase by 7.4% a year

Extra £1bn in 2002/3 for NHS through cash savings elsewhere

Commitment to continue funding NHS out of general taxation

Social insurance and other alternative methods of funding ruled out

NHS reform


Annual report to parliament by independent NHS auditor

Local reports showing how health money has been spent

More choice for patients

New financial incentives for hospitals to improve performance

Education
Direct payments to secondary schools to go up to £114,000 this year


Direct payments to primary schools to go up to £39,300 this year

Help for families


New Child Tax Credit will be available right up the income scale

Families with annual incomes of £58,000 or below will receive help

For the first year of a child's life families earning up to £66,000 will also receive help

Child credit will increase in line with earnings for rest of parliament

Parents will receive £54.25 for the first child and £92.75 for two child family

Families with two children earning up to £35,000 to get up to £50 a week to help with childcare costs

Package adds up to £2.5bn extra for working families

Single working people and the disabled


Working Families Tax Credit extended to single people

Tax credits for couples without children

Working single parents to be guaranteed £179 a week and extra help with childcare

Minimum income for working families of £237 a week

Working disabled single people guaranteed £194 a week

Pensions


Basic state pension increased by £3 a week for single OAPs and £4.80 for couples
Five million pensioners to gain from Pension Credit of about £400 a year


Elderly taxpayers will be able to set the first £6,010 of income against tax, and £6,740 if 75 or over

Other measures


Tax breaks for amateur sports clubs


Review of tax rules for foreign domiciled individuals living in the UK

Tax avoidance loopholes on stamp duty closed

Tax royalty on North Sea Oil to be abolished

The unemployed


New measures to help long-term unemployed

Extending "step up" scheme for unemployed

The environment


Road tax cut for least polluting cars and motorbikes

Cut of £55 in licence fee for least polluting vans

Green electricity production exempted from climate change levy

Small business


Extra £30m for small firms' training needs

Direct cash help to small firms filing tax returns online

Automatic relief for VAT on bad debts for small firms

Automatic fines for late VAT payment abolished for 700,000 small firms

Plan to extend flat rate VAT to more small firms from next April

Small companies' starting rate of corporation tax cut to zero

Small companies' tax cut by 20p to 19p with immediate effect

New R&D tax credit set at 25% - £400m a year

The economy

Extra £4bn for public spending next year

Debt interest will fall to £21bn this year, 2% of national income

GDP growth in 2004 predicted to be between 2.5% to 3%

GDP growth in 2003 predicted to be between 3% and 3.5%

GDP growth predicted to be between 2 and 2.5% this year

UK economy grew by 2.2% in 2001, slightly below the chancellor's forecast



Oi wake up at the back!!

[Janette]

I'm quite pleased with the budget, I think I'm going to be slightly better off for a change!!!!!

[Maggie]

Only if it really helps the Health Service this time