George Osborne did not address problems such as low levels of investment, lack of access to finance, and high energy costs.

George Osborne described the crackdown as the 'largest package of measures to tackle tax avoidance, tax evasion, fraud and error so far this parliament'.

The Chancellor unveiled a raft of upbeat data pointing to the recovery gaining momentum, with record numbers in work, borrowing falling and house prices forecast to soar by 5.2 per cent next year.

'Hello. I think Lucinda is making an Autumn Statement.'

George Osborne revealed that the 0.5 per cent stamp duty savers have to pay for buying shares in UK-based exchange-traded funds will be abolished from next April.

Many employers are hiring staff on contracts where they are classed as self employed, even if they are full-time employees.

In a blow for the Chancellor who used the Autumn Statement to unveil a raft of populist giveaways, 60 per cent thought it was good for ‘rich people’.

Chancellor George Osborne has announced that pensioners will get the chance to boost their incomes in a six month window between October 2015 and April 2016.

With this year's statement imminent, pension experts are pleading for a grace period for an industry that has undergone wide-ranging regulatory changes in recent years.

The age at which people can claim their state pension will rise to 68 in the mid-2030s, 69 in the late-2040s and future rises will be linked to life expectancy.

Call for a freelancer limited company structure to be set up within the tax system and for training for a new career to be tax deductable.

Oil price decline provides a key backcloth to the budget. It will keep downward pressure on inflation, and offers the prospect that the decline in real earnings could start to be reversed.

The Chancellor insists there will be no political tax breaks because Britain must ‘stay the course to prosperity’.

Households up and down the country are hoping Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne will come up with a couple of ‘surprise’ announcements.

The purchasing managers’ index of activity in the UK construction sector dipped from 61.4 in October to 59.4 in November, which is still well above the 50 mark that divides growth and decline.

The annual deficit has fallen from the record £153bn racked up by Labour in 2009-10 to £97.5bn last year, but progress has now all but stalled as tax receipts disappoint.

George Osborne's comments while delivering the 2013 Budget revived his fortunes. But it was only a confidence trick. Now, with an election just around the corner, the Chancellor is in a bind.

Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has very little room for manouevre in today's Autumn Statement.

Annuities which come with death benefits can be passed to loved ones tax-free if you die aged under 75, the Chancellor announced in the Autumn statement.

Income tax free personal allowance to rise to £10,600 rather than the planned £10,500 next year. Higher rate income tax threshold to rise to £42,385 next year.

Live analysis, reaction, charts and data and what the experts and you the readers are saying in reader comments and on social media .

The Chancellor abolished air passenger duty on all flights for children under the age of 12. It will also reduce the cost of a holiday to Spain for a family of four by £26.

The Deputy Prime Minister spurned the chance to hear the Chancellor's statement in person and instead headed to Cornwall to announce funding for coastal defences.

Autumn Statement day is always a big one in the Commons year but yesterday the fervour was particularly felt as next May’s electoral reckoning looms, writes QUENTIN LETTS.

The stinging criticism from former Home Office minister Jeremy Browne came after the deputy leader shunned Wednesday’s Autumn Statement.

Critics argue these initiatives would not be necessary if the banks were doing their job instead of persisting in their reluctance to lend to small companies.

Whether you are earning the minimum wage or raking in millions, the amount of tax that disappears from your earnings is likely to change to some extent.

The big omissions from a Budget or an Autumn Statement are always revealing. It used to be help for savers. This week the missing element was the squeezed middle. Not households, but firms.

As analysts digested the detail of the Chancellor’s ‘mini-Budget’ the ramifications of reforms to stamp duty, business rates and the North Sea tax regime became clearer…

Geoff Parkes, teaching fellow at Aston Business School in Birmingham, said: ‘Thus far, the scheme has accounted for less than two per cent of all lending to small firms.’

Profits made from the sale of assets such as property or shares, which are called capital gains, rose to £32.1billion last year, up from £23.5billion in 2012-13, marking their highest level on record.

Three major changes to pension saving are on the horizon, which will hit those helping to build a healthy fund for retirement. Now, the Chancellor faces calls to reverse a planned tax grab

Today George Osborne will reveal details of his Autumn Statement. We round-up what to expect, including his tax credit headache and the predicted pension changes.

Chancellor George Osborne has confirmed the basic state pension will rise by £3.35 to £119.30 a week from April, while the starting rate for the new single-tier version will be £155.65.

Anyone with a household income of less than £80,000 in England will soon be able to buy a home through shared ownership, which has long been restricted to key workers.

UK Sport has been handed a shock 29 per cent increase in funding, handing a boost to British athletes preparing for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo four years later.

We bring you the latest the analysis, reaction and charts from the experts and our own journalists from throughout the day.

George Osborne says household energy bills will fall by an average of £30 by 2017 as a result of reducing green levies, as outlined in his Autumn Statement this afternoon.

The NHS, defence, foreign aid and housing are set to be the big winners, but the police, transport, justice and the environment will bear the brunt, with families braced for big hikes in council tax bills.

Public funding - known as Short Money - given to opposition parties to prepare to become an alternative government is to be slashed by 19 per cent, in line with Whitehall departments.

The Prime Minister took a few seconds out from the 65-minute brief to subtly unravel the treat and pop it into his mouth like a mischievous schoolboy.

To raise £18billion in spending cuts over the five years, George Osborne slashed departments by up to 37 per cent but the NHS, defence and international development are the big winners.

The Autumn Statement contained some good news for entrepreneurs as George Osborne pledged to carry on exempting micro companies from paying business rates.

George Osborne showed himself a master of his political trade in yesterday's Autumn Statement - but seems to have abandoned his early enthusiasm for slimming down the size of the state.

The climbdown means George Osborne (pictured) will breach his self-imposed welfare cap for the next three years, meaning a minister must explain and apologise to Parliament.

Chancellor George Osborne landed buy-to-let and second homes a huge shock by announcing a stamp duty surcharge on property purchases from April.

Part-time students have been handed some good news in today's Autumn Statement with access to maintenance loans to help with living costs during their studies from 2017/18.

He has repeatedly slashed domestic spending, but the Chancellor remains committed to funnelling 0.7 per cent of Britain's GDP into an array of dubious overseas aid projects.

In his Autumn Statement and Spending Review, Mr Osborne claimed he is tackling the 'crisis in home ownership' head-on with the 'biggest housebuilding programme since the 1970s.'

Theresa May has told Chancellor Philip Hammond to make middle and low-income families in the UK a priority in next week’s Autumn Statement.