National insurance to be cut from 12% to 10% – but tax burden to remain at record high

Published

2 years ago

November 22, 2023

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National insurance is to be cut by two percentage points, the chancellor has announced.

In a boost to employee’s pay packets, Jeremy Hunt told the Commons that the main 12% national insurance rate would fall to 10% from 6 January – saving those on an average salary of £35,000 over £450 a year.

In his autumn statement, he also abolished NI payments for the self-employed, known as class two national insurance, to recognise the government “values their work”.

Politics latest: Chancellor delivers autumn statement amid pressure in the polls

The tax cuts follow long-standing pressure from the Tory backbenches to reduce the burden on both the public and business, which has been sat at a 70-year high.

But it also comes as a general election looms, with the Conservatives still lagging behind Labour in the polls.

Delivering his autumn statement in the Commons, the chancellor said: “If we want people to get up early in the morning, if we want people to work nights, if we want an economy where people go the extra mile and work hard then we need to recognise that their hard work benefits all of us.”

However, Sky News’ economics editor Ed Conway said the overall tax burden on the public would still remain at a record high as the government continued its freeze on tax thresholds.

Forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) showed taxes were still trending upwards, with a post-war high of 37.7% set to be reached by 2028/29 under the current government plans.

They put this down to so-called “fiscal drag”, as while people’s wages may increase, the level at which they start paying tax remains unchanged, and that leads to more people being moved into the higher tax rates – four million more, if the OBR’s prediction is correct.

Labour’s shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said Mr Hunts announcements owed “more to the cynicism of a party desperate to cling onto power than the real priorities of this high tax, low growth Conservative government”, adding: “So I think we can forgive taxpayers for not celebrating when they see the truth behind today’s announcements.”

Elsewhere in his speech, Mr Hunt confirmed Universal Credit would be increased by inflation next April in line with September’s inflation figure of 6.7% – an average increase of £470 for 5.5 million households – despite rumours the government was planning a smaller rise.

And he said the full state pension would go up by 8.5% to £220 per week – worth up to £900 more a year, honouring the Tories’ commitment to the triple lock.

But the chancellor also announced new tougher measures for job seekers, saying those who fail to find work after 18 months of “intensive support” will be given mandatory work placements.

Those who do not engage with the process for six months will lose their benefits altogether.

Mr Hunt also confirmed the much trailed plans to reform the benefits process for those who are signed off work because of sickness or disability.

He called the over 100,000 people signed off each year a “waste of potential” that was “wrong economically and wrong morally”.

As a result, the chancellor said the government would reform the Work Capability Assessment to “reflect greater flexibility and availability of home working after the pandemic”.

Mr Hunt said: “Our choice is not big government, high spending and high tax because we know that leads to less growth, not more.

“Instead we reduce debt, cut taxes and reward work. We deliver world class education. We build domestic sustainable energy and we back British business”.

He added: “Conservatives say we should unlock the potential we have right here at home, which we do with the biggest set of welfare reforms in a decade.”

Other announcements in the autumn statement included:

• Freezing all alcohol duty until 1 August 2024

• Extend 75% business rates discount for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses for another year

• Increasing the local housing allowance rate, giving 1.6 million households an average of £800 of support next year

• Consult on giving savers a legal right to have one pension pot for life that employers pay into

• Make the super deduction tax break for large businesses investing in the UK permanent

The chancellor insisted the government’s plan for the British economy was “working” as ministers had “taken difficult decisions to put our economy back on track”.

He celebrated a reduction in government borrowing and the halving of inflation since last autumn’s record high after Liz Truss’ disastrous mini budget, saying that gave him the room to make tax cuts.

However, inflation still sits at 4.6% – double the target of the Bank of England.

Labour’s Ms Reeves said: “The chancellor claims the economy has ‘turned a corner’, yet the truth is that under the Conservatives growth has hit a dead end.

“What has been laid bare today is the full scale of the damage that this government has done to our economy over thirteen years, and nothing that has been announced today will remotely compensate.”

She added: “As the sun begins to set on this divided, out of touch, weak government, the only conclusion the British people will reach is this – after thirteen years of the Conservatives, the economy simply isn’t working.

“And, despite all the promises today, working people are still worse off.”

The OBR has upgraded its growth forecast for gross domestic product – a measure of the size of the economy – this year, but downgraded the figure for subsequent years.

The budget watchdog’s forecast in March was for the economy to shrink by 0.2% in 2023, but that has now been revised up to 0.6%.

But in 2024 growth is forecast to be 0.7% rather than the 1.8% expected at the time of the Budget, 2025 is expected to see 1.4% rather than 2.5% and 2026 could be 1.9% instead of 2.1%.

Growth is then expected to go beyond the previous forecast, with 2% in 2027, slightly above the 1.9% predicted in March, with 1.7% in 2028.

“If we want those numbers to be higher, we need higher productivity,” the chancellor said.

On the eve of the autumn statement, the Treasury confirmed it would be increasing the national living wage, rising from £10.42 to £11.44 from April, and that it will benefit workers aged 21 and over, rather than 23 and over.

It will mean an £1,800 annual pay rise next year for a full-time worker on the living wage, while 18 to 20-year-olds will receive a £1.11 hourly rise to £8.60.

The changes are expected to impact about two million people.

UK

MasterChef presenter John Torode sacked

Published

5 hours ago

July 15, 2025

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MasterChef presenter John Torode will no longer work on the show after an allegation he used an “extremely offensive racist term” was upheld, the BBC has said.

His co-host Gregg Wallace was also sacked last week after claims of inappropriate behaviour.

On Monday, Torode said an allegation he used racist language was upheld in a report into the behaviour of Wallace. The report found more than half of 83 allegations against Wallace were substantiated.

Torode, 59, insisted he had “absolutely no recollection” of the alleged incident involving him and he “did not believe that it happened,” adding “racial language is wholly unacceptable in any environment”.

In a statement on Tuesday, a BBC spokesperson said the allegation “involves an extremely offensive racist term being used in the workplace”.

The claim was “investigated and substantiated by the independent investigation led by the law firm Lewis Silkin”, they added.

“The BBC takes this upheld finding extremely seriously,” the spokesperson said.

“We will not tolerate racist language of any kind… we told Banijay UK, the makers of MasterChef, that action must be taken.

“John Torode’s contract on MasterChef will not be renewed.”

Australian-born Torode started presenting MasterChef alongside Wallace, 60, in 2005.

A statement from Banijay UK said it “takes this matter incredibly seriously” and Lewis Silkin “substantiated an accusation of highly offensive racist language against John Torode which occurred in 2018”.

“This matter has been formally discussed with John Torode by Banijay UK, and whilst we note that John says he does not recall the incident, Lewis Silkin have upheld the very serious complaint,” the TV production company added.

“Banijay UK and the BBC are agreed that we will not renew his contract on MasterChef.”

Earlier, as the BBC released its annual report, its director-general Tim Davie addressed MasterChef’s future, saying it can survive as it is “much bigger than individuals”.

Speaking to BBC News after Torode was sacked, Mr Davie said a decision is yet to be taken over whether an unseen MasterChef series – filmed with both Wallace and Torode last year – will be aired.

“It’s a difficult one because… those amateur chefs gave a lot to take part – it means a lot, it can be an enormous break if you come through the show,” he added.

“I want to just reflect on that with the team and make a decision, and we’ll communicate that in due course.”

Mr Davie refused to say what the “seriously racist term” Torode was alleged to have used but said: “I certainly think we’ve drawn a line in the sand.”

In 2022, Torode was made an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, for services to food and charity.

UK

David Fuller: Offences committed by hospital worker who sexually abused dozens of corpses ‘could happen again’

Published

11 hours ago

July 15, 2025

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David Fuller: Offences committed by hospital worker who sexually abused dozens of corpses 'could happen again'

An inquiry into the case of a hospital worker who sexually abused dozens of corpses has concluded that “offences such as those committed by David Fuller could happen again”.

It found that “current arrangements in England for the regulation and oversight of the care of people after death are partial, ineffective and, in significant areas, completely lacking”.

The first phase of the inquiry found Fuller, 70, was able to offend for 15 years in mortuaries without being suspected or caught due to “serious failings” at the hospitals where he worked.

Phase 2 of the inquiry has examined the broader national picture and considered if procedures and practices in other hospital and non-hospital settings, where deceased people are kept, safeguard their security and dignity.

What were Fuller’s crimes?

Fuller was given a whole-life prison term in December 2021 for the murders of Wendy Knell and Caroline Pierce in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, in 1987.

During his time as a maintenance worker, he also abused the corpses of at least 101 women and girls at Kent and Sussex Hospital and the Tunbridge Wells Hospital before his arrest in December 2020.

His victims ranged in age from nine to 100.

Phase 1 of the inquiry found he entered one mortuary 444 times in the space of one year “unnoticed and unchecked” and that deceased people were also left out of fridges and overnight during working hours.

‘Inadequate management, governance and processes’

Presenting the findings on Tuesday, Sir Jonathan Michael, chair of the inquiry, said: “This is the first time that the security and dignity of people after death has been reviewed so comprehensively.

“Inadequate management, governance and processes helped create the environment in which David Fuller was able to offend for so long.”

He said that these “weaknesses” are not confined to where Fuller operated, adding that he found examples from “across the country”.

“I have asked myself whether there could be a recurrence of the appalling crimes committed by David Fuller. – I have concluded that yes, it is entirely possible that such offences could be repeated, particularly in those sectors that lack any form of statutory regulation.”

Sir Jonathan called for a statutory regulation to “protect the security and dignity of people after death”.

After an initial glance, his interim report already called for urgent regulation to safeguard the “security and dignity of the deceased”.

On publication of his final report he describes regulation and oversight of care as “ineffective, and in significant areas completely lacking”.

David Fuller was an electrician who committed sexual offences against at least 100 deceased women and girls in the mortuaries of the Kent and Sussex Hospital and the Tunbridge Wells Hospital. His victims ranged in age from nine to 100.

This first phase of the inquiry found Fuller entered the mortuary 444 times in a single year, “unnoticed and unchecked”.

It was highly critical of the systems in place that allowed this to happen.

His shocking discovery, looking at the broader industry – be it other NHS Trusts or the 4,500 funeral directors in England – is that it could easily have happened elsewhere.

The conditions described suggest someone like Fuller could get away with it again.

UK

MasterChef is ‘bigger than individuals’ and ‘can survive’, BBC says

Published

11 hours ago

July 15, 2025

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MasterChef is 'bigger than individuals' and 'can survive', BBC says

BBC director-general Tim Davie has said MasterChef can survive its current scandal as it is “much bigger than individuals” – but the corporation must “make sure we’re in the right place in terms of the culture of the show”.

On Monday, it was revealed an independent review into “inappropriate behaviour” by MasterChef presenter Gregg Wallace had upheld more than half of the allegations against him.

A few hours later, Wallace’s former MasterChef co-presenter, John Torode, said an allegation he used “racial language” was upheld in the report as part of a review.

After the report was published, Wallace, 60, said he was “deeply sorry” for causing any distress, and never set out to “harm or humiliate”.

Torode, 59, said he had “no recollection of the incident” and said he “did not believe that it happened,” and said he was “shocked and saddened by the allegation”.

Mr Davie said the BBC’s leadership team would not “tolerate behaviour that is not in line with our values,” while BBC chair Samir Shah acknowledged there were still pockets within the broadcaster where “powerful individuals” can still “make life for their colleagues unbearable”.

They said several BBC staff members had been dismissed in the last three months, following an independent review into workplace culture.

Wallace, who was sacked from MasterChef last week, is not included in that count as he was not directly contracted by the corporation, but employed by independent production company Banijay.

The corporation has yet to decide if the unseen MasterChef series – filmed with both Wallace and Torode last year – will be aired or not.

News of the findings in the Gregg Wallace report came just hours before the BBC was deemed to have breached its editorial guidelines by failing to disclose that the child narrator of a Gaza documentary was the son of a Hamas official.

Media watchdog Ofcom subsequently launched its own investigation into the programme.

While the 2024-25 annual report showed a small rise in trust overall for the corporation, Mr Davie acknowledged it had been a year which saw the reputation of the BBC damaged by “serious failings” in the making of the documentary.

The BBC boss acknowledged: “It was important that the BBC took full responsibility for those failings and apologised for them,” and later in response to a question, called the documentary – Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone – “the most challenging editorial issue I’ve had to deal with”.

He went on: “The importance of fair balance reporting, the need for high-quality homegrown programming in the face of massive pressure, I think has never, ever been greater. And I believe my leadership and the team I’ve assembled can really help the BBC thrive in that environment and very competitive environment.”

BBC boss has chair’s ‘full support’

Despite a series of failings in recent months – including livestreaming the controversial Bob Vylan set at Glastonbury last month – Mr Davie insisted he can “lead” the organisation in the right direction.

When asked if he would resign, he replied: “I simply think I’m in a place where I can work to improve dramatically the BBC and lead it in the right way.

“We will make mistakes, but I think as a leadership and myself, I’ve been very clear, and I think we have been decisive.”

He said the organisation was setting a “global standard” for media.

Mr Shah, reiterated his support for Mr Davie.

“Tim Davie and his team, and Tim in particular, has shown very strong leadership throughout all this period and he has my full support.”

The report also revealed its top earners, which saw former Match Of The Day host Gary Lineker top the chart once again.

Meanwhile, Australian children’s cartoon Bluey proved a boon for the broadcaster, and was the most watched show in the US across all genres – with 55 billion minutes viewed.

The top 10 shows watched over Christmas 2024 were also all from the BBC.

Recent annual reviews have been overshadowed by the Huw Edwards scandal and allegations of a toxic environment around flagship show Strictly Come Dancing.

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