People living and working across Huntingdonshire will benefit from today’s Budget as the Government delivers on the promises made to the British people, investing in infrastructure, the NHS and public services.

The plans outlined by Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, will get things done and provide security for the present while laying the foundation for prosperity in the future.

The Budget marks the start of record level of investment in the people’s priorities - infrastructure, the NHS and public services – to ensure the promises in the General Election in December are kept and the potential of every part of the United Kingdom is unleashed.

Increases in the National Insurance threshold and the National Living Wage announced today will mean families keep more of the money they earn, while tens of millions of pounds of investment in Huntingdonshire and the wider region’s roads, rail, housing, broadband and flood defences will ensure everyone can have the same chances and opportunities in life wherever they live.

Thanks to the measures taken today, someone working full-time on the minimum wage in Huntingdonshire will be over £5,200 better off compared to ten years ago when the Conservatives’ came into office.

MP for the Huntingdon Constituency, Jonathan Djanogly, said today’s Budget proves this Government ‘will get things done’ for thousands of families across his constituency.

Today’s announcements include:

• Delivering £3.4 billion for major road schemes between 2020 and 2025. This will build the A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet.

• Boosting road maintenance funding by £69 million. The East of England will receive £69 million in additional funding for local road maintenance through the Potholes Fund in 2020-21.

• Investing in further education, the arts and sports in schools to ensure everyone gets the best start. We will invest £1.5 billion over five years to refurbish further education colleges. The Budget also provides £29 million a year by 2023-24 to support primary school PE teaching, ensuring children are getting an active start to life and £90 million a year to introduce an Arts Premium to secondary schools in England – averaging out as £25,000 per secondary school for three years.

• Putting more money in peoples’ pockets with more than a £200 tax cut for the typical family. We will increase the National Insurance threshold to £9,500 this April, benefiting 31 million people with a typical employee saving over £100 in 2020 – the first step to reaching our ambition to increase the threshold to £12,500.

• Freezing fuel duty for a tenth year in a row to help with the cost of living. We will freeze fuel duty for the tenth year in a row saving the average car driver a cumulative £1,200 compared to Labour’s plan.

• Freezing duty rates on beer, spirits, wine and cider helping with the cost of living. This will be only the second time in almost 20 years a government has frozen all these duties.

• Setting out an ambitious package to build quality homes this country needs. The Budget announces £9.5 billion for the Affordable Homes Programme helping to prevent homelessness and help people to get on the housing ladder and taking the total funding to £12.2 billion from 2021-22. This will be the largest cash investment in affordable housing in a decade.

Commenting, Jonathan Djanogly MP said:

“Last year’s election gave a clear verdict. Now the people’s Government is delivering a Budget which delivers on our promises to the British people – it is a Budget of a government that gets things done.

“Investment will reach record levels over the next five years, as the Conservatives commit to levelling up across the country – benefitting families and businesses in all corners of the country including Huntingdonshire.

“I am delighted that we have set out measures to support families and help them with the cost of living, while continuing to invest in Britain’s future responsibly – laying the foundations for a decade of growth and prosperity through upgrading infrastructure such as the A428 from Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet.

“This Budget sets out a clear, one nation, path for the Government to get things done.”

Today, the Chancellor also set out the Government’s economic response to supporting those affected by Covid-19. The Government has put forward a package of temporary, timely and targeted measures to support public services, individuals and businesses through the economic disruption caused by COVID-19.

Supporting our public services:

• We will provide any extra resources needed by the NHS and other public services to tackle the virus. We have created a new £5 billion Initial COVID-19 Response fund so the NHS can treat Coronavirus patients; councils can support vulnerable people; and ensure funding is available for other public services.

• £40 million of new funding to enable further rapid research into COVID-19 and increase the capacity and capability of testing and surveillance.

Supporting people affected:

• Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) will be now be available for eligible individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 who are unable to work because they are self-isolating. This is in addition to the change announced by the Prime Minister that SSP will be payable from day 1 instead of day 4 for affected individuals.

• £500m more funding so Local Authorities can support economically vulnerable people and households. We expect most of this funding to be used to provide more council tax relief, either through existing Local Council Tax Support schemes, or through complementary reliefs.

Supporting businesses experiencing increases in costs or financial disruptions:

• We will bring forward legislation to allow SMEs and employers to reclaim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) paid for sickness absence due to COVID-19. This refund will cover up to two weeks’ SSP per eligible employee who has been ill because of COVID-19; Employers with fewer than 250 employees will be eligible; Employers will be able to reclaim expenditure for any employee who has claimed SSP as a result of COVID-19. We will work with employers over the coming months to set up the repayment mechanism for employers as soon as possible

• We will increase the Business Rates retail discount to 100% for one year and expand it to the leisure and hospitality sectors, and the introduction of a £5,000 rates discount for pubs. Taken together with existing Small Business Rates Relief an estimated 900,000 properties, or 45% of all properties in England, will receive 100% business rates relief in 2020/21. Guidance for local authorities on the application of the expanded retail discount will be published by MHCLG on 20 March.

• Businesses and self-employed people in financial distress may be eligible to receive support with their tax affairs through HMRC’s Time To Pay service. Arrangements are agreed case-by-case. Businesses can contact HMRC’s new dedicated COVID-19 helpline from 11 March 2020 for advice.