Warning: I am not a tax accountant, a tax solicitor, or a financial journalist. I am not an expert any field. I agree with paying tax, but I do agree with reducing one’s tax burden.
Political warning: I am a swing voter and not affiliated with any particular political party.
I’d say this is a win for productions and location owners. I don’t think it is enough for the conservatives to clinch the general election, but it is a step in the right financial direction for many.
Independent film makers will receive a 53% tax credit for films with budgets under £15m. There is also continued tax relief on visual effects for film and high-end TV.
The British film industry needed help. We have been battered by the Hollywood strikes last year. We screamed for government help, and they have finally taken notice. Fortunately, we are well represented by the BFI, Production Guild, Film London and the British Film Commission, who can effectively petition the governments when needed, which has been the case here. (do buy them a drink when you see them at the networking events this year, they deserve it after their efforts).
Film studio rates have also been a serious concern recently for filmmakers. We get a 40% business rates relief till 2034.
That side, it was also great to see £26.4 million going to our National theatre. It shows a support for the arts. Get your tickets and show your support: https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/whats-on/
The quality of productions are excellent, and tickets can be affordable if you book early.
Further reading:
Inflation and tax
Total inflation 2021, 2022 and 2023 is approximately 21.67%, based on figures from the office for budget responsibility (OBR). This has pushed the whole country into higher rates of tax. The government may talk strongly about reducing inflation, but it isn’t all bad for them. It erodes government debt and creates an environment of higher tax yield by stealth. We are still paying the highest level of tax since 1948, the highest level outside of war time. We really needed a tax threshold change across all personal tax and corporation tax. One would expect low taxes during a Conservative government, this has certainly not been the case. I mention inflation and tax at the start of this blog, because I believe this is a good matter to keep in mind while reviewing the rest of budget changes.
National Insurance
2p cut in employee national insurance rates and a 2p cut for the self-employed. Main rate of NICs decreasing to 6 percent from 8 per cent.
You can work out your rate cut here:
It seems like a miracle that they didn’t forget self-employed people and it is a lovely change of tone from the usual self-employment tax witch hunt. Company directors will also benefit from this. This could be a move to drive more middle-income voters to the ballot box for Conservatives.
It is worth pointing out that there was a NI cut in the autumn statement as well. Combined to give a 4p cut in total.
Nom-Doms:
Zero interest to our pocket. A Tory move to stop Labour from capitalising on it?
The British ISA
I’m a fan of the ISA, so I was bound to like this. £5000 extra which you can protect from the HMRC, and it goes to British listed companies helping stimulate the economy. Great, and hopefully implemented sooner rather than later. Those that do not use your ISA and LISA allowance should. You can wrap up to £20,000 a year and no tax is payable on the interest, dividends, or capital gains.
Fuel and alcohol
A freeze in fuel duty, which helps with prices at the pump, but with the oil and gas windfall tax extended by a year – the price at the pump is already being driven upwards by government policy anyway.
Cheaper diesel at the pump could really help us, we use lots of diesel in generators and in our trucks. This has increased production costs.
Alcohol duty is unchanged. At least the price of a well-earned pint doesn’t change.
Childcare
The threshold has been raised from £50,000 to £60,0000, and the taper increased to £80,000 where it is withdrawn. This is great for film crews with family.
NHS
It would be good to have seen something here. The suspicious part of my brain thinks that the slow erosion of the service is policy, designed to make us fall out of love with it while we slowly descend into privatisation without putting up as much of a fight.
Final thoughts:
The self-employed were not forgotten, which is a positive move. All workers are ultimately slightly better off today than we were yesterday and Jeremy Hunt has given concessions to many working Joe’s. For it to be a general election winning budget, the thresholds would have needed to be raised higher across the board. That being said, dramatic tax lifting could have the Truss effect, so perhaps lifting gradually is safer. I think that there is cause for some celebration in todays budget
I am neither pro-conservative or labour but I think that whichever Government holds the reigns, they need to recognise the importance of the UK filming industry in terms of revenue to the Treasury, UK jobs, boosts to local economies, our ability to brand and market the country well, which makes it highly important that we can compete on the global film stage. Favourable budgets and tax breaks are vital to ensuring that the filming industry continues to thrive. They are also essential in ensuring that both film crews and our location owners benefit from home-grown and overseas revenue.
Further reading:
The full budget:
Guardian:
Financial Times:
Office of budget responsibility: