Director & Tax Expert, Rachael Ball, on the Chancellor's Pre-Budget Speech: Key Takeaways

LHP Accountants
6 days ago
2 min read

Yesterday’s speech from Chancellor Rachel Reeves was an interesting one, not full of policy reveals but a deliberate scene-setter.

It felt more like a moment to manage expectations than to make headlines.

Compared with last year’s Budget and Labour’s manifesto, this felt like a shift.

The ambition for growth is still there, but the pace has changed.

There’s a new emphasis on:

credibility,
fiscal restraint and
“earning trust”.

It’s a familiar pivot: Osborne in 2010, Hammond in 2016, Hunt in 2022, all moments when the Treasury’s language turned from optimism to realism. Historically, that kind of tone has been followed by quiet but meaningful tax changes rather than sweeping rate hikes.

If that pattern repeats, here’s what could come next:

Dividend and Capital Gains Tax changes: Potential cuts to allowances or aligning CGT rates more closely with income tax for higher earners.

Extended income-tax threshold freezes: Fiscal drag doing the heavy lifting on revenues.

Reform of non-domicile and wealth rules: A drive for fairness and visibility on global income.

Tightening of reliefs: Pension tax relief or Inheritance Tax exemptions could face “simplification” reviews.

Business reform: Corporation tax likely to stay at 25%, but with adjustments to reliefs and capital allowances to fund investment incentives.

And if the strongest rumours are to be believed:

Council Tax revaluation could finally return to the agenda, long overdue and politically sensitive, but consistent with her fairness narrative.

Inheritance Tax changes are reportedly being reviewed (again), focusing on thresholds on reliefs such as Agricultural and Business Relief, with an aim to make the system more transparent and equitable following the backlash from last years budget.

Pension tax relief reform could re-emerge, perhaps not wholesale, but a “flattened” or capped structure to rebalance higher-rate benefits.

CGT alignment could go further than many expect, potentially matching the upper income-tax rate for higher earners.

For anyone planning their finances, the message is the same as ever: keep perspective. Tax policy will evolve, but a well-structured financial plan should adapt without panic. Any changes should be made carefully and with proper financial planning, tax and legal advice.

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