Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has reduced the threshold at which the top rate of income tax is paid from £150,000 to £125,140 in his autumn statement. It means more people will pay the higher 45% rate.
Mr Hunt announced two new fiscal rules, telling the Commons: "The first is that underlying debt must fall as a percentage of GDP by the fifth year of a rolling five-year period. The second, that public sector borrowing, over the same period, must be below 3% of GDP."
The Chancellor went on: "The plan I'm announcing today meets both rules. Today's statement delivers a consolidation of £55 billion and means inflation and interest rates end up significantly lower. We achieve this in a balanced way: in the short term, as growth slows and unemployment rises, we will use fiscal policy to support the economy."
