At yesterday’s budget, Chancellor George Osborne outlined the Government’s plans to make the UK Europe’s technology centre, with broadband as a cornerstone of its business policies.
The new plans will see the UK Government’s expand its funding for digital Britain, including money for further broadband infrastructure, alongside a tax credit for the digital entertainment industries, extending it beyond the film industry and into video games, animation and TV productions.
Osborne went a step further, claiming that the Government’s new goal is to be ‘better than Europe’ comparing its broadband plans to Singapore and South Korea’s high speed internet infrastructure.
The goal is still for reach 90% superfast broadband penetration, the rest supplemented by mobile options.
Osborne announced which cities will benefit from a £100m pot of Treasury cash aimed at making them “super-connected”.
These are London, Edinburgh, Belfast, Cardiff, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Leeds, Manchester and Newcastle.
He also announced a further £50m to improve net access in “smaller cities” and pledged a tax credit scheme for the video games industry.
The super-connected cities were first announced in Mr Osborne’s autumn statement when he pledged £100m to create 100Mbps (megabit per second) citywide networks in 10 urban areas.
Mobile coverage for transport routes
The chancellor also announced plans to extend mobile coverage to 60,000 rural homes and along at least 10 key roads by 2015, including the A2 and A29 in Northern Ireland, the A57, A143, A169, A352, A360 and A591 in England, the A82(T) in Scotland and the A470(T) in Wales, subject to planning permission.
Funding would come out of the £150m investment announced in the Autumn Statement.
The government will also consider whether direct intervention is required to improve mobile coverage for rail passengers.
Osborne said: “Two years ago Britain had some of the slowest broadband speeds in Europe; today our plans will deliver some of the fastest – with 90 per cent of the population having access to superfast broadband, and improved mobile phone coverage for rural areas and along key roads across the UK.
“But we should not be complacent by saying it is enough to be the best in Europe when countries like Korea and Singapore do even better.”
Video games tax credits
Osborne outlined a plan to match the £1bn already invested in tax credits for the UK film industry by announcing plans to match this in the other entertainment industries to drive international investment and ensure that programs such as ‘Wallace and Gromitt’ continue to be produced in the UK.
It plans to introduce corporation tax reliefs from April 2013 for the video games, animation and high end television industries, but all will subject to State aid approval and consultation.
The news comes as struggling video games retailer Game said that it intended to file for administration.
Highlights from Chancellor George Osborne’s 2012 Budget:
*Tax-free personal allowance to rise by £1,100 from April 2013 to £9,205, making 24 million people £220 a year better off.
.
*Child benefit will only be withdrawn from higer rate tax-payers if someone in the household has an income of more than £50,000. To avoid a “cliff-edge” effect, child benefit will be withdrawn at 1% for every extra £100 earned over £50,000. An additional 750,000 families will keep some or all of their child benefit and only those earning £60,000 or more will lose all of it.
*Top rate of income tax reduced to 45p from April 2013.
*New cap on tax reliefs set at 25 per cent of total income for anyone claiming more than £50,000 in a year, but no significant change to pensions relief.
*Stamp Duty on properties worth over £2 million increases to 7 per cent from midnight tonight.
*Vehicle excise duty to rise by inflation, but frozen for road hauliers.
*No further changes to existing plans for fuel duty. Motorists had wanted Mr Osborne to defer the planned August fuel duty rise in today’s Budget.
*Duty on all tobacco products to rise by 5 per cent above inflation from 6pm today – the equivalent of 37p on a packet of cigarettes.
*No change to duty rates on alcohol.
*Immediate 1 per cent cut in the headline rate of corporation tax, which will bring it to 24 per cent from April. Two further cuts in 2013 and 2014 will reduce corporation tax to 22 per cent.
*Personal tax statement to be sent to 20 million tax-payers from 2014.
*New single tier pension for future pensioners to be set around £140 and based on contributions.
*Age-related allowances for pensioners to be simplified over time, starting in April 2013, creating a single personal allowance for all but ensuring no pensioner loses in cash terms.
*Consultation on simplifying tax for small firms with a turnover of up to £77,000.
*The Government is publishing independent review on local pay rates for public sector, with some departments given the option to move to local pay for civil servants whose freeze ends this year.
*The Government is considering enterprise loans for young people to start their own business.
*Sunday trading laws to be relaxed for eight weeks around Olympics, starting on July 22.
*Funding for ultra-fast broadband and wi-fi in ten of the UK largest cities.
*Tax credit to be introduced for video games, animation and high end TV industries.
*£100 million of support for new university science research facilities.
*The Government is to support £150 million of tax increment financing to help councils promote development and provide an extra £270 million for the Growing Places fund.
*Forces serving overseas to receive 100 per cent relief on average council tax bill, and families welfare grant will be doubled.
*Automatic review of state pension age to ensure it keeps pace with increasing life spans.
*£100m of improvements in the accommodation of the armed forces and their families, funded by £2.4 billion savings from ending combat operations in Afghanistan.
*Total borrowing will be £11 billion less than forecast last autumn.
*Inflation to fall from 2.8 per cent this year to 1.9 per cent in 2013 and 2 per cent by the end of the forecast period.
*Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts one million more jobs in the economy over five years.
*The Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts unemployment to peak this year at 8.7 per cent before falling each year to 6.3 per cent by the end of the period.
*Mr Osborne pledges to “take millions out of tax”.
*He promised a “simpler tax system” that is competitive for business, lifts millions of low paid out of tax and increases revenue from the wealthiest.
*Mr Osborne described it as a Budget that supports working families and those looking for work.
Read the official Budget 2012 from the HM Treasury here (PDF File)
