RICHEST 1% GET RICHER

Hunt's £3.8bn in tax gift for fatcat pensions. But struggling key workers get nothing

- JOHN STEVENS, GRAHAM HISCOTT Head of Business and BEN GLAZE Deputy Political Editor

JEREMY Hunt yesterday blew the chance to deliver fairness for all as his Budget lavished more gifts on the wealthy.

The Chancellor handed £3.8billion in tax breaks so the 1% of fatcats can squirrel away more cash in their pension pots.

Labour said anyone with a £2million pension could now save as much as £275,000 in tax.

But Mr Hunt gave nothing to millions desperate for a boost in the crippling cost of living crisis, denying workers including nurses, teachers and paramedics a fair pay rise.

Ministers insisted the tax giveaway was aimed at getting more doctors nearing retirement age to stay in work for longer. But pensions   expert John Ralfe said: "This isn't about supporting a hard-pressed NHS, it's really a tax giveaway for tens of thousands of the very highest earners, including undeserving City slickers, who can shovel more cash into their pensions."

Paul Johnson, of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, added: "If you wanted to target doctors, you need to sort out the NHS pension scheme, not change the entire tax system." Under radical changes, a £1million limit on how much the rich can put in their pensions without paying tax will be completely removed, while an annual allowance will be increased.

And he insisted it was a "political choice" by Mr Hunt not to provide more cash for public sector pay rises while inflation remains high.

In a desperate bid to make his "Budget for growth" sound like a triumph after 13 years of Tory cuts, the Chancellor boasted that the UK will not go into recession this year.

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