Key Announcements…
- £13.8bn in extra day-to-day spending for 2020-21, representing a 4.1% uptick
- NHS funding increase of £6.2bn next year, most of which was already announced under Theresa May’s government
- Education spending increase of £7.1bn by 2022-23 compared to the current fiscal year
- Secondary schools to be allocated a minimum £5,000 per pupil, primary schools will get £3,750
- £750m for 20,000 police officers including £45m to hire 2,000 police by March next year
- Home Office day-to-day spending to increase by 6.3%
- Ministry of Defence funding to increase by £2.2bn or 2.6%
- Confirmation of an additional £2bn in Brexit preparation funding, on top of £2.1bn already announced.
You can read the full policy paper here
Is It Really The End To Austerity?
During a lively session in the House, accusations of “electioneering” were thrown about, while the Chancellor was warned not to deviate from the topic of the spending round, as his speech was tainted by talks of a Bill regarding delaying Brexit. Despite the increases, spending levels for many key departments remains well below those of 2010. These announcements come with warnings of financial uncertainty in turbulent times amid Brexit chaos.