MI5 continually adapts to counter terrorism

The new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt released his “autumn budget,” which included £55 billion of tax hikes and spending cuts.

- ANTONIA FILMER

The tax increases touted by the media are now a reality; the income tax additional rate threshold is reduced from £150,000 to £125,140, and the capital gains tax threshold has been reduced twice, from £12,300 to £6,000 in 2023 and then to £3,000 in 2024. The income tax, national insurance, and inheritance tax thresholds will be maintained at current levels for two years, and the tax-free allowance for dividends has been halved. The question of whether fuel duty will be raised next year or not has irritated backbenchers, and eco-drivers who have opted for electric vehicles are angry they will have to pay the full road tax from 2025. The Office for Budget Responsibility expects inflation of up to 11% this year—a 40-year high—with an economic recession lasting just over a year, with GDP falling 2% and not returning to its pre-pandemic level until the end of 2024. Hunt said the next couple of years would be challenging, but the government is taking the difficult decisions needed to bring down inflation and protect vulnerable households with additional benefits. Small-c conservative voices argue that only low taxes promote growth, and that real austerity in the budget does not become apparent until after the next general election, implying that the Prime Minister and Chancellor have a remote chance of the Conservatives winning the next election. The success of the “budget” will be put to the test in the mayoral and local elections in May 2023.

MI5 Director General Ken McCallum gave his annual threat update, explaining the increasingly complex variety of terror threats facing the UK and the challenges posed by states, in particular the elected authoritarian regimes in Russia, China, and Iran.