Philip Hammond has hit almost 2.5 million self-employed people by an average £240 a year with a hike in National Insurance contributions in his first Budget – despite a Conservative manifesto promise that NICs would not rise during this Parliament.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Mr Hammond also hit savers by cutting the tax-free dividend allowances from £5,000 to £2,000 from April 2018 – a move expected to affect 2.2 million people, including 7% of pensioners.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Despite measures for women, including £20 million to tackle domestic violence, £5 million to help mothers return to work and £5 million for celebrations of the centenary of votes for women, Mr McDonnell said the Budget – which fell on International Women’s Day – had “failed the fairness test for women” who are hardest hit by public service cuts.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Mr Hammond told MPs the “dramatically different” treatment of employees and self-employed people under NICs was “no longer justified by the difference in benefits entitlement” and cost the Treasury £5 billion this year alone.

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Liberal Democrat Treasury spokeswoman Baroness Kramer said: “This is a tax on builders, taxi drivers and window cleaners, some of Britain’s hardest working people. This hits the gig economy where people are already insecure and facing rising prices and job uncertainty. And on International Women’s Day, it will hit over one-and-a-half million women.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

A Treasury source insisted that the Government had “kept its manifesto commitments”, as legislation published after the election made clear that the pledge applied only to the Class 1 NICs paid by employees.

But the manifesto itself makes no distinction between different classes of contribution, stating simply: “A Conservative Government will not increase the rates of VAT, Income Tax or National Insurance in the next Parliament.”