The June 2010 United Kingdom Budget, officially also known as Responsibility, freedom, fairness: a five-year plan to re-build the economy, was delivered by George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons in his budget speech that commenced at 12.33pm on Tuesday, 22 June 2010. It was the first budget of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition formed after the general election of May 2010. The government dubbed it an "emergency budget", and stated that its purpose was to reduce the national debt accumulated under the Labour government.
The 2012 United Kingdom budget was delivered by George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on Wednesday 21 March 2012.
The 1981 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Geoffrey Howe, the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 10 March 1981. It was Geoffrey Howe's third budget and the second of the first Thatcher ministry. The budget represented a strongly monetarist response to the stagflation and high government borrowing which the UK was suffering at the time. The budget speech lasted for 91 minutes.
The March 2021 United Kingdom budget, officially known as Protecting the Jobs and Livelihoods of the British People was a budget delivered by Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor of the Exchequer in March 2021. It was expected to be delivered in autumn 2020, but was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It succeeds the budget held in March 2020, and the summer statement and Winter Economy Plan held in summer and autumn 2020, respectively. The budget is the second under Boris Johnson's government, also the second to be delivered by Sunak and the second since Britain's withdrawal from the European Union. The budget was the first for government expenditure in the United Kingdom to exceed £1 trillion.
The June 1979 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Geoffrey Howe, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 12 June 1979. It was Howe's first budget and the first of the first Thatcher ministry, which had been elected a few weeks earlier. It was also the second budget to be delivered to Parliament in 1979. The budget marked a major change in direction for the UK economy, with an increase in reliance on interest rates and monetary policy to control inflation. It is also noted for its introduction of substantial tax cuts, such as reducing the top rate of income tax from 83% to 60% and the basic rate from 33% to 30%. The budget also saw an increase in VAT from 8% to 15%.
The 1988 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Nigel Lawson, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 15 March 1988. It was the fifth budget to be delivered by Lawson during his tenure as Chancellor, and marked major changes to taxation, with reductions in income tax and changes to inheritance tax rules, as well as changes to mortgage interest relief that prevented homebuyers from being able to pool mortgage allowances. The changes announced to mortgage relief ultimately helped to further fuel an ongoing property boom which led to a rise in inflation and an increase in interest rates. Due to frequent disruptions during the Chancellor's speech, Deputy Speaker Harold Walker was required to suspend proceedings in what was described as an outbreak of "grave disorder".
The 1998 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Gordon Brown, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 17 March 1998. It was the second budget to be presented by Brown following Labour's 1997 general election win, and sought to maintain the broad public support given to Labour in 1997 by announcing measures that would appeal to those who had voted the party into office. One of the key features of the 1998 budget was the Working Families Tax Credit, a benefit that could be claimed by families on low income. Brown also announced tax cuts for businesses, the launch of a £50m rural transport fund, and committed to taxing child benefit at a future date.
The 1996 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Kenneth Clarke, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 26 November 1996. It was Clarke's fourth budget, the last to be delivered during his tenure as chancellor, and the last budget to be presented by the Conservative government of John Major before the party was defeated by Labour in the 1997 general election. Prior to Clarke's budget statement being presented to the House of Commons, its contents were leaked to the Daily Mirror, which returned the document to the government but decided to print some of the details, thus helping Tony Blair, then the leader of the Opposition, to prepare his response. Clarke described his statement as one that outlined a "Rolls-Royce recovery – built to last" and predicted economic growth of 2.5% for 1997 and 3.5% for 1998, but Blair dismissed it as "a last-gasp budget of a government whose time is up".
The 1995 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Kenneth Clarke, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 28 November 1995. It was Clarke's third budget, and one of the shortest budget speeches in modern history. In his statement, Clarke reduced the middle rate of income tax by 1p to 24p, and after announcing that his spending reductions for the previous year had exceeded expectations by more than £3bn, announced plans to increase spending on healthcare, education and policing. His budget was criticised by members of the Conservative Party for not including more tax cuts, while Shadow Chancellor Gordon Brown of the Labour Party dismissed it as "the 7p up, 1p down budget".
The 1994 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Kenneth Clarke, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 29 November 1994. It was the second budget to be presented by Clarke since his appointment as chancellor the previous year, and its central focus was a planned £24bn worth of tax cuts. Clarke also renewed his commitment to increasing Value Added Tax (VAT) on fuel, but pledged to soften the impact this would have on pensioners. The statement took place shortly after the Party Whip had been withdrawn from eight Conservative backbenchers, leaving the government without a working majority, and amid questions about the future of John Major's leadership of the party. In response to the budget, Tony Blair, leader of the Labour Party, said it would be remembered as the "VAT on fuel budget".
The November 1993 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Kenneth Clarke, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 30 November 1993. It was the second budget to be presented in 1993, and the first to be presented by Clarke following his appointment as Chancellor by Prime Minister John Major earlier that year. The November 1993 budget was also the first in the modern era to be held in the autumn, the government having decided to move the date of the budget so it could outline its tax and spending plans at the same time.
The March 1993 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Norman Lamont, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 16 March 1993. It was the third and final budget to be presented by Lamont during his tenure as chancellor, and the final spring budget to be outlined before the Conservatives unified their tax and spending plans into one budget statement.
The 1991 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Norman Lamont, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 19 March 1991. It was Lamont's inaugural budget following his appointment as chancellor by Prime Minister John Major, and the first to be presented following the resignation of Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister the previous autumn.
The 1987 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Nigel Lawson, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 17 March 1987. It was the fourth budget to be presented by Lawson, and saw him announce tax cuts worth £2.6bn. He also forecast a £3bn reduction in government borrowing. Among his announcements were a reduction in the basic rate of income tax from 29% to 27%, and a reduction in Corporation Tax from 29% to 27%. The budget took place three months before the 1987 general election, which the Conservatives won. Neil Kinnock, leader of the Opposition Labour Party described it as a "bribes budget".
The 1986 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Nigel Lawson, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 18 March 1986. It was the third budget to be presented by Lawson, and saw the start of a programme of tax cuts initiated under the leadership of Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Lawson set the theme of his budget as "popular capitalism" and stated his wish to turn a nation of homeowners into a nation of shareholders. As well as a cut in the basic rate of income tax from 30% to 29%, there were other changes to taxation. 1986 was also the year the chancellor announced the launch of the Personal equity plan (PEP), a tax-exempt plan that would allow ordinary members of the public to invest up to £2,400 a year in equities. Labour leader Neil Kinnock, the leader of the Opposition, dismissed the budget as a "bits and pieces budget" that promised "jam tomorrow".
The 1985 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Nigel Lawson, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 19 March 1985. The second budget to be presented by Lawson, it was held shortly after the end of the year-long 1984–85 miners' strike. The chancellor said the cost of the strike on public borrowing had impacted on his plans for tax reductions, although he did make some changes to income tax personal allowances and stamp duty. Changes to National Insurance were also announced, but threatened to place extra costs on employers.
The 1984 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Nigel Lawson, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 13 March 1984. It was the first budget to be presented by Lawson, who had been appointed as chancellor after the 1983 general election, and saw him embark on "a radical programme of tax reform". These included a reduction in Corporation Tax and a cut in the higher rate of Transfer Tax and raised the Stamp Duty threshold.
The 1983 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Geoffrey Howe, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 15 March 1983. It was the final budget to be presented before the 1983 general election and the last to be presented by Howe. He announced a programme of tax cuts worth around £2bn for individuals and £750m for business, as well as increasing personal allowances by 14%, 8.5% above the rate of inflation. Social Security benefits were also raised. The Conservatives went on to win the election, but Howe would subsequently be replaced as chancellor by Nigel Lawson in a post-election cabinet reshuffle.
The 1982 United Kingdom budget was delivered by Geoffrey Howe, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on 9 March 1982. This was the fourth budget to be presented by Howe during his tenure as chancellor, and came at a time when unemployment had reached three million and the governing Conservative Party were unpopular in opinion polls. Howe painted a bleak picture of the UK economy and outlined a fairly neutral budget. As well as drawing criticism from the Leader of the Opposition, the statement was also condemned by the Conservative MP Ian Gilmour, who had advocated a reflation package worth £5bn. The budget was presented a few weeks before the Falklands War, an event that was to revive the Conservatives' fortunes.
The November 2023 United Kingdom autumn statement was outlined to the House of Commons on 22 November 2023 by Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt. The statement, Hunt's second as Chancellor, came at a time when the governing Conservative Party was trailing in the opinion polls, with the Labour Party experiencing a double-digit lead, and was his last autumn statement before the next general election.
