Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an impact assessment of the potential effect of measures included in the Spring Statement 2022 on Scotland.

The Chancellor’s Spring Statement on 23 March 2022 announced a number of measures to support households and businesses in every region and nation of the UK, and to relieve the immediate pressure on our cost of living. It set out that taxes are being cut, that debt is falling, and that public spending is increasing.

Raising the National Insurance thresholds is a tax cut for 2.4 million workers in Scotland, saving the typical employee over £330 a year. As a result of a cut to the basic rate of Income Tax for savings income in 2024, taxpayers in Scotland will see benefits worth £3 million. As other Income Tax rates in Scotland are devolved, the Scottish Government will receive an extra £350 million in 2024-25 due to the cut in the basic rate of Income Tax for non-savings, non-dividends income.

Further support for UK households and businesses included the £1,000 increase to the Employment Allowance, which will benefit around half a million businesses across the UK, as well as the cuts to fuel duty on petrol and diesel, by 5p per litre, for the next 12 months.

In addition to this UK-wide action, the Chancellor also announced that the UK Government is providing the Scottish Government with an additional £45 million through the Barnett formula in 2022-23, as a result of measures announced in the Spring Statement.