Sunak promises income tax cut

Photograph: GoSimpleTax on Flickr / YorkMix

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has said he will cut the basic rate of income tax from 20 pence in the pound to 19 before the end of the current Parliament, in 2024.

He told MPs: “A clear goal for Conservative chancellors, and even some Labour ones, has been to cut income tax. The fact this has only happened twice in 20 years tells you how hard it is to do.

“Covid and the war in Ukraine have only added to the difficulty of achieving this by the end of this Parliament.”

He added:

It would clearly be irresponsible to meet this ambition this year – and yet I refuse to let that ambition wither and drift. By 2024, the OBR currently expects inflation to be back under control, debt falling sustainably, and the economy growing. Our fiscal rules are met with a clear safety margin.

So, my final announcement today is this: I can confirm, before the end of this Parliament, in 2024, for the first time in 16 years, the basic rate of income tax will be cut from 20 to 19p in the pound.

A tax cut for workers, for pensioners, for savers. A £5 billion tax cut for 30 million people. It is fully costed and fully paid for in the plan announced today.