AUTUMN BUDGET 2024: Key points for the assistive tech sector
Yesterday (30 October 2024), Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves delivered the Labour Party’s Autumn Budget to Parliament, detailing the UK Government’s tax and spending plans for the year ahead.
Below, AT Today has highlighted some key points that assistive technology, health, and social care professionals should be aware of.
The chancellor confirmed an additional £22.6 billion for day-to-day spending over two years for the Department of Health and Social Care, supporting the NHS to deliver an extra 40,000 elective appointments per week.
With an overall goal of transforming the NHS, the government will also publish a 10-year NHS plan in spring 2025. This plan will set out reforms transform the NHS from analogue to digital and more from model of sickness to prevention shift care from hospital to community.
Additionally, Rachel Reeves announced £600 million of new grant funding to support social care. This is alongside an £86 million increase to the Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) to support 7,800 more adaptations to homes for those with social care needs to reduce hospitalisations and prolong independence.
The National Minimum Wage will be increased by 6.7 percent, from £11.44 an hour to £12.21 hour, for people aged 21 and over. The National Minimum Wage will rise for people aged between 18 and 20-years old from £8.60 to £10.
National Insurance, VAT, and Income Tax will not be increased. Meanwhile, National Insurance Contributions thresholds will be unfrozen from 2028-29 onwards, meaning tax backets will not change until then.
However, National Insurance contributions by employers will rise from 13.8 percent to 15 percent. In addition, the threshold at which businesses start paying National Insurance on a worker’s earnings will be lowered from £9,100 to £5,000.
The smallest businesses will be protected from this change, as the Employment Allowance will increase to £10,500 from £5,000 and be extended to all eligible employers by removing the £100,000 cap, allowing firms to employ up to four National Living Wage workers full time without paying employer National Insurance on their wages.
The weekly earnings limit for Carer’s Allowance will be increased to 16 hours at the National Living Wage, worth an additional £45 a week from April next year, making over 60,000 carers eligible for support and helping carers to balance work and caring responsibilities. A carer will now earn over £10,000 a year whilst receiving the allowance.
The government will publish a Get Britain Working White Paper to uncover the root causes of work inactivity with a joined-up approach across health, work, and education.
Rachel Reeves also announced a £1 billion uplift to help support children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).