Financial News

Chancellor Sets Date For Budget 2017

Chancellor of the Exchequer Phillip Hammond has revealed the date he expects to give Budget 2017.

He has cleared his diary for Wednesday, November 22.

The Budget will be the first since Prime Minister Theresa May led her ruling Conservative Party to a shock defeat in a snap General election aimed at consolidating her power base.

Instead, she lost vital seats in Parliament that forced the Tories into an uncomfortable alliance with Ulster’s tiny Democratic Unionist Party who have afforded her a 10-seat majority in the Houses of Parliament.

Important date for Parliament

Hammond give another Budget in the spring, but had already said he wanted to change the Budget main date to November to give businesses and government department’s time to enact any changes before the start of the financial year on April 6 each year.

Moving Budget Day also allows more time for consultation before new policies pass into law.

The spring Budget will revert to a ‘state of the UK’ update with little or no major economic or tax policy changes, says The Treasury.

“Budget Day is one of the most important dates in the Parliamentary calendar,” said Hammond.

How the dates have switched around

“It’s when I go to the House of Commons and review our economic performance, set out our plans for raising the taxes that we need over the coming years and how we intend to spend them to support our public services.

“It’s also when we set out our thinking about how to make the economy strong, resilient and fair. An economy that works for everyone.”

The Autumn Statement joined the Westminster calendar in 1976 but stayed small-scale until 1993 when then Chancellor Tory Ken Clarke upped the ante by merging both reports into one Autumn Budget.

Later, Labour Chancellor Gordon Brown switched the Budget to spring, where it has remained until this year.

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