What does the 2025 Spring Statement mean for tax?

Written by Morag Loader – Director of Accounting and Tax

On 26 March  2025, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, delivered her first Spring Statement. Full details of the Spring Statement can be found here.

Our view:

As expected, there were no new tax measures announced at the Spring Statement, since the Chancellor intends to have only one fiscal event a year in the autumn.

However, there may be more opportunities for private sector involvement in government projects, given the increased government appetite for infrastructure spending. For example, the Lower Thames Crossing project go-ahead, given on 25 March 2025, includes provision for private finance. Given global uncertainty and the economic outlook, further tax rises in the Autumn Budget 2025 appear increasingly likely.

Overview

• Increase in defence spending
• Commitment to building new homes
• More investment to help HMRC close the tax gap
• Fiscal headroom addressed through welfare and departmental spending cuts

The Chancellor repeated her commitment to delivering just one fiscal statement a year at the Autumn Budget. There would be no further tax increases announced in the Spring Statement. Some tax increases announced at the Autumn Budget 2024 are due to come into effect this spring, such as the National Living Wage and Employer National Insurance increases.

Advance tax certainty for major projects

An open tax consultation on advance tax certainty for major projects was announced at the Autumn Budget 2024 as part of the government's Corporate Tax Roadmap. The concept is to develop a new process giving major investment projects increased tax certainty in advance regarding their tax commitments. The consultation closes on 17 June 2025, and comments are invited.

New Tax Consultations

The Chancellor announced a number of tax-related open consultations in the Spring Statement:

• Research and Development tax relief advance clearances
• Better use of new and improved third-party data (aimed at financial services providers)
• Behavioural penalties reform (simplifying how tax penalties are calculated and providing a stronger deterrent for deliberate tax avoiders)
• Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Reserve Tax exemption for PISCES transactions (the Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System is a new type of stock exchange that will allow private companies to have their shares traded intermittently)
• Enhancing HMRC's ability to tackle tax advisers facilitating non-compliance
• Closing in on promoters of tax avoidance
• Climate Change Levy: electrolytic hydrogen and energy context (the government has committed to removing Climate Change Levy costs from electricity used in electrolysis to produce hydrogen)

Anyone wishing to comment can submit their thoughts before the due date advertised on each consultation.