Rishi Sunak announced the Autumn Budget on 27 October 2021.
It’s packed with detail, but what does it mean for you?
Let’s have a gander at what the budget delivered for the North East in particular, and reflect on the announcements in construction, property, and capital gains tax.
Investment in the North East
The North East applied for millions in funding for Levelling Up projects in the region. It’s paid off in this budget. In total, the North East has secured £100 million in funding – boom!
The bid for £20 million for major improvements in Grainger Market was successful. Small independent businesses will be delighted with this news, giving them a canny base in the heart of Newcastle.
Grainger will get a makeover with a new layout, becoming a world class public space. Even Newcastle United’s new owners might be chuffed with that.
West Denton Community Leisure Centre also picked up much-needed investment, and secured £19.8 million in funding. With its pool still closed after the first lockdown, it seemed unlikely that it would ever reopen.
But this boost will transform the leisure centre into a champion net zero facility, with a swimming pool open all year round, and improved facilities like a sports hall, gym, café and library.
One of the most exciting projects is the Housing Innovation and Construction Skills Academy in Sunderland. The Academy received funding to train people in building and upgrading the city’s homes locally. It’s banging to see investment in local homes, construction and future talent in the region.
Construction
Alongside the Levelling Up projects, the government is investing in infrastructure, spending £21 billion on roads and £46 billion on railways nationwide.
The North East sees some of that funding, particularly in Tees Valley. The region will receive £310 million to upgrade train stations in Darlo and The Boro, and to improve transport links.
The idea is to create a “London-style” transport network. Who knows what that means exactly, but it should reduce waiting times and increase the frequency and quality of public transport.
Property
Rishi Sunak made some cheery announcements for the property sector.
Importantly, he recognised the struggle of many leaseholders in buildings with unsafe cladding. Speculation over solutions to the cladding issue came up in pre-released budget information. Those bits of info from the Chancellor have now materialised, as he pledged £5 billion towards removing unsafe cladding from high-risk buildings.
This cost is met by a tax on property developers. We’ll await to see how this is practically worked out, but it’s a solid sign to many leaseholders worried about huge bills to remove cladding.
We also saw support for lower-income households. With concern over higher energy bills this winter, there’s a whopping grant of £1.8 billion for tens of thousands of low-income households to help make homes easier and greener to heat. Not only will this go towards reducing energy bills, but it’ll support the UK’s and the region’s net zero targets.
Capital gains tax
There was much speculation hoyed around over increases in capital gains tax (CGT) ahead of the budget announcement.
But no hikes in CGT rates were announced in the budget. The only change is that the deadline for residents to report and pay CGT after selling UK residential property will increase from 30 days after completion to 60 days.
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