PM delays corporation tax cut

PM postpones corporation tax cutThe Prime Minister has announced that planned cuts to corporation tax are to be put on hold. The rate paid by firms on their profits was due to fall from 19% to 17% next April but Boris Johnson said the potential £6bn cost would be better served going on "national priorities" such as the NHS. Mr Johnson told the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) conference that the UK already had the lowest rate of corporation tax of "any major economy", highlighting that corporation tax had already fallen from 28p to 19p in the pound since 2010, adding that further cuts would be "postponed". He added that the move comes as the Conservatives “believe emphatically in fiscal prudence”. Mr Johnson also said the Tories plan to lower business rates, saying a reduction - “particularly for SMEs” - will boost the high street. He also said employers’ national insurance contributions – which he described as a "jobs tax" – will come down.