Budget Briefing – 30th October 2024
The Chancellor has delivered the Autumn Budget 2024; please find enclosed details of those policies that may affect our clients:
Executive Summary
In July the government published an audit of public spending. This set out £22 billion of in-year pressures. These pressures were not limited to 2024-2025, with the vast majority recurring in future years.
There has additionally not been a Spending Review since 2021, so departmental budgets have not been systematically re-planned to account for the recent spike in inflation and other factors that have caused significant cost pressures.
The government is taking a different approach. Autumn Budget 2024 is:
- Putting the public finances on a sustainable path by strengthening the fiscal framework, including announcing new fiscal rules, and taking difficult decisions on tax, welfare and spending.
- Growing day-to-day departmental spending at an average of 2.0% per year in real terms between 2023-2024 and 2029-2030 to support public services, including to deliver 40,000 extra elective appointments a week and reduce NHS waiting lists.
- Boosting capital investment by over £100 billion over the next five years, including in transport, housing and research and development (R&D), with a greater focus on value for money and delivery to help unlock long term growth.
Net Zero and Clean Energy
Transitioning to Net Zero and delivering on the government’s clean energy superpower mission is central to ensuring sustainable and resilient long‑term growth. The government will deliver this transition in a way that captures economic opportunities, securing investment and growth in clean energy industries across the UK.
The government has already taken steps to unblock and drive investment into the UK’s clean energy industries.
- Reversed the de facto ban on onshore wind in England, which will help deliver cheap, reliable, and clean energy across the UK.
- Approved four major solar projects of nearly 2GW, enabling the creation of thousands of jobs.
- Significantly increased the budget for the sixth Contracts for Difference allocation round, resulting in a record number of contracts.
- Secured £34.8 billion of private investment into the UK’s clean energy industries around the International Investment Summit.
The Budget builds on these first steps and seeks to maximise the growth opportunities of the Net Zero transition and grow UK clean energy industries by:
- Providing £3.9 billion of funding in 2025-2026 for Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage Track-1 projects to decarbonise industry, support flexible power generation, and capitalise on the UK’s geographic and technical strengths.
- The government will provide support for the first round of electrolytic hydrogen production contracts, harnessing renewable energy to decarbonise industry across the length and breadth of the UK.
Accelerating grid connections and building new network infrastructure is central to unblocking private investment, delivering growth in clean energy industries and other growth sectors like AI, data centres, and manufacturing. The government is working with the new National Energy System Operator (NESO) and Ofgem to develop a robust grid connection process, to ensure viable projects are connected in a timely manner.
Clean energy industries will be supported to create green jobs across the UK. The government will provide support for the first round of electrolytic hydrogen production contracts, harnessing renewable energy to decarbonise industry across the length and breadth of the UK. The settlement will provide £134 million to support the delivery of port infrastructure to facilitate floating offshore wind.
Fuel Duty
One year extension to the 5p cut in rates and no RPI increase in 2025-2026.
Climate Change Levy (CCL)
Amendments to the Climate Change Agreement scheme from 1st January 2026, meaning new entrants will be able to claim relief on their CCL bill before completing a target period.
Climate Change Levy main and reduced 2026-2027 rates – The main rates of the Climate Change Levy (CCL) for gas, electricity, and solid fuels will be uprated in line with Retail Price Index (RPI) in 2026-2027. The main rate for liquefied petroleum gas will continue to be frozen. The reduced rates of CCL will remain at an unchanged fixed percentage of the main rates.
| Taxable Commodity | Rate from 01/04/2025 |
| Electricity (£ per kWh) | 0.00775 |
| Natural gas (£ per kWh) | 0.00775 |
| LPG (£ per kg) | 0.02175 |
Carbon Price Support (CPS)
Maintain the freeze of CPS rates at the equivalent of £18 per tonne of CO2 from 1st April 2026.
Carbon Price Support 2026-2027 rates – The government will maintain Carbon Price Support rates in Great Britain at a level equivalent to £18 per tonne of CO2 in 2026-2027.
