Mr Kwarteng announced in his mini-budget on Friday that the 1% cut in the basic income tax rate – first announced by former chancellor Rishi Sunak – would be brought forward by a year. This means that from April 2023, basic rate taxpayers will pay 19% income tax, up from 20%. According to Mr Kwarteng, this works out to an average tax saving of £170 next year for 31 million people. The additional rate of income tax – 45% for workers earning £150,000 or more – has also been abolished. Anyone earning more than £50,271 will pay the top rate of 40% after the change starts in April 2023.
