MTA welcomes capital allowances in Budget

MTA CEO James Selka said: "Having the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) fall of a cliff edge on the 31st of December would be disastrous for manufacturing investment. The very possibility that it might happen is inhibiting long term planning. What we need now is for an end to the seemingly annual changes to the Capital Allowance regime and for Government to settle long term on a system that makes investing in the UK internationally competitive.”

In his speech Mr Osborne said: "The boost I provided to the Annual Investment Allowance comes to an end at the end of the year. A better time to address this is in the Autumn Statement. However, I am clear from my conversations with business groups that a reduction to £25,000 would not be remotely acceptable – and so it will be set at a much more generous rate.”

Other items in the Budget that reflect longstanding MTA priorities include additional funding for UKTI targeted at China and a commitment to making R&D Tax Credit more friendly to small business.

There were other things for manufacturers to welcome too, with a support package for the Oil and Gas industry, investment in regional growth – notably in West Yorkshire and the Midlands – and tranches of money for a number of research areas including driverless vehicles and the Internet of Things.