Osborne Chooses Debt Payment Over Sweeteners

George Osborne urged voters to "choose the future, choose jobs and choose economic security" as he set out his "responsible" vision for the economy.

As he opened his sixth Budget with just 50 days until the election, Mr Osborne confirmed the UK has grown faster than "any other major advanced economy in the world" and Britain was "walking tall again".
The Chancellor attempted to present an economic plan that was, as promised, not packed with pre-election "giveaways" but responsible and careful.
Mr Osborne announced a £9bn windfall from bank sales, and said there had been lower debt interest and lower welfare bills but said this would be used to pay down the national debt and not spent irresponsibly.
He said the national debt was falling and added: "The hard work and sacrifice of the British people has paid off. The original debt target I set out in my first Budget has been met.
"We will end this Parliament with Britain’s national debt share falling. The sun is starting to shine – and we are fixing the roof."
However, there were some sweeteners in the statement including the widely predicted increase in amount people can earn without paying income tax to £11,000.
Mr Osborne also raised the threshold at which workers start paying the 40p tax rate above inflation from £42,385 this year to £43,300 by 2017-18.
And he promised it was a "down-payment" on the Conservative party commitment, made during the autumn conference, to raise the higher Rate threshold to £50,000.
He also announced a Help To Buy ISA for first time buyers which for every £200 saved for a deposit, the Government would top up with £50 more.
Mr Osborne rounded off his hour-long speech by saying: "Five years ago I had to present to this House an Emergency Budget. Today I present the Budget of an economy stronger in every way from the one we inherited.
"The Budget of an economy taking another big step from austerity to prosperity. We cut the deficit – and confidence is returning."
Other measures contained in the Budget included:
:: The lifetime allowance on pensions will be reduced from £1.25m to £1m.
:: The Government will legislate to tackle multinationals who move their profits to cut tax.
:: Tax evasion will be a criminal offence with new penalties for those who assist them.
:: The rate of the bank levy will be increased to 0.21%, raising an additional £900 million a year.
Mr Osborne said that growth had been revised up to 2.5% and had been greater in The North than in The South.
He also hailed the employment figures out today which he said showed "under this Government, 1,000 more jobs have been created every single day".
A Sky News projection, following analysis of the latest polls, suggests a hung parliament with the two parties virtually neck and neck.
It also comes after new figures showed the number of unemployed falling by more than 100,000 to 1.86m, which is the lowest since 2008.