Commenting on last Wednesday’s Budget, the ABI director general Otto Thoresen said:
“We welcome the Chancellor’s decision to protect savers from further changes to pension tax relief. This is the right decision which will encourage pension saving in the year when auto-enrolment begins.
We strongly welcome the latest reduction in the rate of Corporation Tax. It will undoubtedly improve the competitiveness of the UK, and increase returns for investors in British companies.
We all want to see sustainable new communities, but not at the expense of allowing unwise developments in flood risk areas to start again.
Having succeeded in recent years in largely stopping developments in high flood risk areas it is vital that these controls are not relaxed as part of any reform to the planning rules.
On Controlled Foreign Companies, the reforms have the potential to attract insurers to Britain rather than drive them away as the current rules do. However, the rules work rather differently for insurers than for other industries and much of the legislation important for insurers will only be published for the first time in the Finance Bill. Other crucial parts are still uncertain.
Until we have seen the Finance Bill we will not know if the reforms will be a success, but we welcome the Government’s focus on this important area of business taxation.
We welcome the initiative to simplify the state pension. It will be a significant benefit to those seeking clarity as they plan for retirement.”
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