This week George Osborne delivered his Autumn Statement to Parliament. The annual Autumn Statement details the state of the nation’s finances and sets out the Government’s future tax and spending plans. Autumn Statement 2014 contained good news for Stratford-on-Avon, including: Extra help for the high street • Small business rate relief will be extended, meaning many local businesses will continue to pay no business rates at all. • Business rate rises will be capped at 2 percent between April 2015 and March 2016. • The ‘high street discount’, which gives pubs, shops, cafes and restaurants £1000 off their business rates, will rise to £1500 from April next year. Support for creative industries • A new children’s TV tax credit will benefit companies like Stratford’s Ragdoll Productions • Tax breaks for regional theatres will now be extended to orchestras, good news for Stratford’s Swan Orchestra. VAT refunds • The Shakespeare Hospice will benefit from VAT refunds for the hospice sector. Stamp duty reform • Stamp duty is being cut for 98 percent people who pay, with only the very richest buyers paying more. • Under the old rules, you would have paid stamp duty at a single rate on the entire property price. Now, you will only pay the rate of tax on the part of the property price within each tax band – like income tax. • Under the new system the average buyer in Stratford-on-Avon will pay £2,928.41 less in stamp duty. If you want to find out more about this year's Autumn Statement, I discuss it in greater detail here: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/nadhim-zahawi/autumn-statement-2014_b_6262586.html?utm_hp_ref=uk