Gloucester’s MP Richard Graham has highlighted three changes in the new financial year that benefit all working families and come into effect from this week.
Richard said “firstly the tax-free personal allowance rises again, from £11,000 to £11,500. This benefits about 59,000 people in our city and a typical basic rate taxpayer will now pay £1,000 less income tax this year than he or she did in 2010”.
The City MP noted that as a result of the changes to the personal allowance and the higher rate threshold, about 2.7 million people in the South West will be on average £192 better off and 116,000 more residents in the region taken out of income tax altogether, compared to 2015-16. “That means,” he said, “that my constituents can offset increased council tax bills as government encourages councils to live more within their means locally.”
Richard then secondly drew attention to a further increase in the National Living Wage, which goes up to £7.50 an hour – “this means an income boost of over £500 a year for a full time worker in Gloucester,” he noted.
The third bit of good news is that the government is also providing up to £2,000 a year per child through an expansion of tax-free childcare, to help with family costs. “It’s a big bill, childcare, and this will help many constituents, especially those who need it most,” said Richard.
The local MP added: “we’re all impatient for change. Locally we’ve won new money for estate regeneration in Matson and Podsmead, and for much more culture in the city centre, both of which are exciting. Nationally these changes cut tax for over 30 million people, give the lowest paid a wage boost and help more with childcare. So more of my working constituents WILL be better off, and realise that work does always pay now”.
The Personal Allowance is rising from £11,000 to £11,500. It will go up to £12,500 by the end of this Parliament.