Will the autumn statement be harsher than expected?

It is envisaged that the Chancellor may increase capital gains tax in his autumn statement on 25 November.

It is also envisaged that there will be other stealth rises and reductions in valuable tax reliefs. Agricultural tax relief for one is handing by a thread!

This one is going to be a rollercoaster! I hope you are sitting tight!

Most tax specialists predict it will be harsher than previously expected, for two reasons. First, the Chancellor has failed to push through legislation cutting tax credits for the low-paid, so that the public sector borrowing requirement will be larger than planned at the time that Finance Bill (no.2) 2015 was drafted. Second, that Finance Bill also contained a measure precluding increases in the rates of the three main taxes – income tax, national insurance contributions and value-added tax – for this parliament. This means the public sector borrowing requirement (PSBR) deficit cannot be reduced by adjusting these rates.”