Last week we saw the Chancellor make his final Autumn Statement of this Parliament.
Part of it provided an update on the economy's performance and it was pleasing to see that the Conservatives' long-term plan is working. Britain now has the fastest growing economy of any major country, jobs are up and unemployment down, and the deficit has been halved.
The Autumn Statement also included many new policies that will help Tooting residents:
- We will overhaul stamp duty so that 98% of stamp duty payers pay less tax when they buy their home
- We will continue to back businesses to create jobs in all parts of the country - with action on business rates and more help for the high street
- We will abolish the employers' jobs tax on apprenticeships for people under 25 to help more young people get the skills they need
- We will raise the personal allowance, and higher rate taxpayers will also benefit - a down payment on the Conservatives' commitments to raise the personal allowance to £12,500 and the higher rate threshold to £50,000 in the next Parliament
- We will cut tax for families by abolishing air passenger duty for children
- And we will support savers by letting husbands and wives inherit their partner's ISA and keep its tax-free status.
I'm supportive of these measures and I hope you also feel that they are making our country more competitive, rewarding aspiration and making our country fairer.