Budget 2012: What it means for you
GEORGE Osborne today unveiled his 2012 Budget in the House of Commons.
As always on Budget Day there were big winners and big losers - depending on your own individual circumstances.
Here we explain what this year's Budget means for you, your family and friends...
FAMILIES
VERDICT: BETTER OFF
Last-minute changes to controversial child benefit proposals mean 90% of families will still receive the benefit. Only households with someone earning more than £50,000-a-year will lose out, with people earning more than £60,000 seeing it scrapped entirely. A rise in the personal allowance, to £9,205 by April next year, means 24 million lower and middle income earners - including most families - will benefit by up to £100 per year.
PENSIONERS
VERDICT: WORSE OFF
The big losers in today's Budget. A record rise in the state pension, by £5.30-a-week in April, had already been announced last year and the rest of the news was grim. Age-related tax allowances are to be frozen, meaning more than four million people will be £83 worse off by 2014. The introduction of the single-tier state pension will cost some current pensioners up to £80-a-year as money is redistributed from higher-earning pensioners to those lower down the scale. Labour leader Ed Miliband claimed that this budget amounted to a 'tax rise for pensioners' and, when inflation is taken into account, it's hard to disagree.
YOUNG COUPLES & SINGLES
VERDICT: BETTER OFF
Young people who smoke, drink or drive (see below) may disagree, but on the whole this was a good Budget for Britain's youngsters. Economic growth is expected to rise to 3% by 2015/2016, creating an additional million jobs along the way. Combined with projected falling inflation and the rise in the personal allowance, most young people will have a bit - if not much - more in their pocket in the coming years.
STUDENTS
NO CHANGE
There were no major announcements for students in today's Budget, but inevitably many who work part-time will be helped by the rise in the personal allowance. The new 'tax free' earnings threshold of £9,205 will take virtually all students with part-time and summer jobs out of the tax system. On the downside, students who either smoke, drink or drive - which again, is virtually all of them - will see their cost of living increase. So, overall, most students will be as well off tonight as they were this morning.
MOTORISTS
VERDICT: WORSE OFF
The Chancellor ignored pleas from drivers to delay August's planned 3p rise in fuel duty. When VAT is added to that, the rise will amount to 3.62p a litre on petrol - meaning that a typical 50-litre petrol refill will cost £1.81 more.
Petrol averages 139.67p a litre, while diesel currently averages at 146.39p a litre, so with oil prices on the rise and the duty increase coming, motorists could be faced with prices of £1.60-a-litre or higher by the end of summer.
SMOKERS
VERDICT: WORSE OFF
From 6pm tonight, smokers will be forced to cough up 37p more for a packet of cigarettes. The typical price for a packet of 20 cigarettes will now be around the £7.50 mark. The Government says the changes are to deter smoking, as much as to raise revenue, which will thrill smokers no end. At the current rate of increase, cigarettes will cost £10-a-packet by 2016.
DRINKERS
VERDICT: WORSE OFF
No changes were made to alcohol duty - although prices will still increase by two per cent above inflation because of the duty escalator. As a result, the cost of a pint of beer in London will approach the £4 mark for the first time, while bottles of wine under £5 will all but disappear. Supermarkets, already aggressively cutting the price of alcohol, are expected to absorb some of the increase, but pubs will continue to lose out.