Budget 2017: Chancellor Philip Hammond cuts stamp duty for first time buyers and makes second Devolution Deal for the West Midlands
Stamp duty is to be abolished for first-time buyers on properties up to £300,000 as Chancellor Philip Hammond put measures to tackle the UK's housing crisis at the centre of his Budget.
The measure will also apply on the first £300,000 of a purchase in high-price areas, meaning 95 per cent of first-time buyers will see at least a cut in the amount of stamp duty, with 80 per cent paying none at all.
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The cut will come into force immediately, Mr Hammond said, as he set out plans to build 300,000 extra new homes a year by the mid 2020s.
"This is our plan to deliver on the pledge we have made to the next generation that the dream of home ownership will become a reality in this country once again," Mr Hammond said.
Over the next five years Mr Hammond pledged a total of at least £44 billion of capital funding, loans and guarantees to support the housing market.
The Chancellor also:
set out plans to hike road tax for diesel cars
set aside £3 billion to prepare for Brexit
addressed concerns about the impact of Universal Credit
But in a sign of the economic difficulties facing the UK, Mr Hammond said the Office for Budget Responsibility had downgraded growth forecasts across the next five years.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn condemned the Budget, saying it was a "record of failure with a forecast of more to come".
