Budget 2025
There are positives and negatives in the Budget for Essex. The key positive is that the Chancellor has broadly accepted the demand for no new taxes on business, bar some marginal changes which will have an impact. This offers a degree of stability and certainty for businesses which have been navigating very choppy economic waters.
Likewise there is some welcome news on transport and infrastructure. The announcement of the final £891m of public funding for the Lower Thames Crossing can be particularly transformative for our region and we look forward to the opportunities this can bring.
Business will welcome support for youth employment, stamp duty relief, protection for capital spending, a reduction in business rates multipliers and some investment tax breaks.
But they will be concerned about salary sacrifice changes, mandatory wage increases, and retention of the energy profits levy, which will maintain cost pressures.
Also on the downside, we have seen UK-wide business support funding of almost £1bn axed and replaced with a system of piecemeal support which favours select urban regions. That risks further regional inequality and damage to rural economies. The East of England, including Essex, is not among the favoured regions.
Overall we expect most businesses will weather this new financial landscape but they are still being squeezed by rising costs and many will be disappointed that this Budget did not provide a more compelling blueprint to deliver transformational growth.
The British Chambers of Commerce has produced a very useful summary of the Budget, which is available here:
A pack including an economic summary, policy grid and a link to HMT materials
Lower Thames Crossing
In her Budget speech the Chancellor announced further funding of £981m for the Lower Thames Crossing, providing the resources needed to begin building next year. This is welcome news as the Chambers has long supported the ambition for the LTC, which we believe will deliver significant benefits to international trade, British businesses and help fuel growth in the Thames Estuary, throughout Essex and beyond.
Opportunity East
With our partners Chambers in the East we have supported, and contributed to, a ‘one year on’ report which updates the case for investment in the East of England. This was published on 19 November and is available here.
The essential argument is that the East of England is a productive region that punches above its weight and yet could deliver even more with the right level of government support. However, it’s clear from the Budget that we are disadvantaged by not having mayoral strategic authorities in place (except for Cambridge/Peterborough) as most regeneration funding is going to those areas in the North and Midlands which have established them.
Heathrow SME export awards
We have been made aware of an awards scheme run by Heathrow Airport aimed at SMEs who export. They are seeking entries from the East of England and have so far none at all from Essex so if you think you might fit the bill more details are here - and if you enter, good luck!