The excitement is nearly over and we are finally going to see what the Chancellor has in store for her 2025 Budget.

The leaks have been rife over the last few months and there is a school of thought that they have been leaked to gauge public perception in the fight against losing votes to other parties. Maybe the Chancellor is genuinely confused about what to do in a challenging economic climate and how best to raise funds for the Treasury without upsetting every working person and their dog.

So, let’s jump on the bandwagon and look at those predictions:

  • A potential levy on properties that are worth more than £2m – probable.
  • Increase in income tax rates – unlikely due to the manifesto pledges.
  • Freeze income tax thresholds – the ultimate stealth tax and almost guaranteed.
  • Pay per mile for electric cars (potentially including hybrids) – very likely.
  • Capping the NIC benefit of salary sacrifice schemes for pension contributions – likely.
  • Removal of the two-child limit benefit cap – vote winner so extremely likely.
  • Potential of an “employer’s NIC” on LLP profits – hopefully not.
  • Adding NIC to other forms of income – namely for landlords – possible and will increase rents as costs are passed on.
  • Removing the rebasing of CGT on death – unlikely and will be a headache for executors in some cases if they need to find out when an asset was acquired.
  • Restricting the cash that can be saved into ISAs – apparently from £20k to £12k.
  • SDLT changes of some description – could be anything, so likely.

The longer Labour are in power, there is less chance to continue to blame the old Conservative government and less chance to introduce manifesto breaking changes. Raising basic rate income tax by 1%, for example, could help with the, so called, black hole in public finances.

There are a lot of potential changes that could happen and even the Chancellor will be aware what is happening now. No doubt the leaks will continue until the Chancellor stands up to deliver her speech.

Throughout the Budget speech, Gepp Solicitors will be posting the important changes as they are announced, with a more detailed look at them once the smoke has cleared. Is it too early to think about a Merry Xmas? Let’s see what happens tomorrow and then decide if it will be a merry one or not.