Budget 2012 statement
15 March 2012 (updated on 16 March 2012)
Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, delivered his Budget statement to the House of Commons on Wednesday 21 March
Budget statement
Watch and read the Budget statement on Parliament TV and in Commons Hansard and read the Budget 2012 documents on the Treasury website:
- Parliament TV: Budget statement
- Commons Hansard: Budget statement
- 2012 Budget Resolutions (PDF 252KB)
- HM Treasury: Budget 2012 documents (external site)
The Budget usually takes place in March or April. Every year the Chancellor of the Exchequer makes a major speech to the House of Commons on the state of the national finances and the Government's proposals for changes to taxation. This statement is known as the Budget.
What is in the Budget?
The Budget statement includes:
- a review of how the UK economy is performing
- forecasts of how the UK economy will perform in the future
- details of any changes to taxation.
What happens after the Budget statement?
It is customary for the Leader of the Opposition to respond to the speech given by the Chancellor rather than the Shadow Chancellor. The Shadow Chancellor makes his response the day after the Budget statement during the Budget debates.
The Budget Debate will continue on Thursday 22 March, Friday 23 March and will conclude on Monday 26 March.
House of Commons Library Analysis
The House of Commons Library regularly produce briefing notes which inform MPs about key issues. The Library has produced three briefing papers on the 2012 Budget.
- Commons Library briefing paper: The 2012 Budget
- Commons Library briefing paper: Background to the 2012 Budget
- Commons Library Research Paper: Economic Indicators, Budget update
Further information
More information about the 2012 Budget can be found on HM Treasury website. The Parliament website has information about the history of the budget as a parliamentary occasion and frequently asked questions about budget speeches and financial documents.