Having met his pledge to halve inflation by the end of the year — albeit thanks to the Bank of England — Rishi Sunak has confirmed that tax cuts will be in tomorrow’s Autumn Statement. Much of the focus is likely to fall on business taxation in the face of a flatlining economy and stalling productivity growth.
This is to be funded by higher-than-expected “fiscal headroom”. But this is not all as it seems. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has called this money an “illusion”, as it includes higher tax receipts in cash terms but funding for public services has not been increased to take into account high inflation. This at a time when the NHS waiting list approaches eight million, school buildings are crumbling and the criminal justice system is on its knees.
