The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, has announced that he will deliver his Autumn Statement to the House of Commons on Wednesday, 22 November 2023. This move would imply that the annual Budget will not take place until the spring of 2024.
The Autumn Statement is used to give an update on the state of the economy and will respond to the economic and fiscal forecast published by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). The Autumn Statement also presents an opportunity for the government to publish consultations, including initiating early-stage calls for evidence and consultations on long-term tax policy issues.
The OBR has executive responsibility for producing the official UK economic and fiscal forecasts, evaluating the government’s performance against its fiscal targets, assessing the sustainability of and risks to the public finances and scrutinising government tax and welfare spending.
The Chancellor has made it clear that the main focus of the Autumn Statement will be to continue with measures to bring down inflation. We are therefore unlikely to see any major tax cuts that could further fuel inflation.