Budget in Brief

Given the tagline of ‘Investing In Our Island’s Future’, this year’s Budget has been designed to lay the foundation for an administration keen to show it can improve the island.

However, while the pink book itself is brightly sleeved, it could be accused of being slightly lacking in colour. That isn’t necessarily a criticism, every first budget is part planning and part inheritance, but there is a lot of functionality and not necessarily a lot of exciting announcements. 

Throughout the year, the gov is, in this Budget, committing to revenue spending of £1.15 billion of taxpayers’ cash, after accounting for reserve transfers. This includes a £16.68m uplift in health and care revenue spending, alongside £5.08m of contingency funding for Manx Care, though this would require Treasury approval before it is released. 

Unsurprisingly, climate change features heavily in spending plans with £25m set aside for climate change, as well as £3m for the environmental protection fund, £9m for climate change adaptation and £5m for climate change mitigation.

Capital

Often where the big beasts of fun spending lurk, even in this there is little that will make you take the streets with a party hat on your head and bottle of bubbly in hand, again it is important to work, but without a real firework show.

There is £10m for the ‘economic fund’, but it’s not certain what that means to your average person. Elsewhere there is £5.9m for the fibre optic network, £2.74m for additional educational needs, £3m for the King Edward VIII pier, £2m for international arrivals at the airport, £1.9m for the Balthane Gateway, £1m for the Sea Terminal and £972,000 for the pre-contract and design work for the new Castletown high school.

What’s the Minister Said?

Minister Ashford said: ‘As we move away from the challenges of the pandemic we must ensure we have clear sight as to how we structure our spending and investment plans to ensure that we can continue to grow our economy, support our people and invest in our future.

‘The prudent use of reserves and timely intervention with targeted financial support has ensured that we have not only protected lives and the health of the nation but also the economy which is so essential in providing the income we need to provide the services and environment that make our island great.’

Benefits

• Key rises in the following benefits:
• Pensioners

Basic state pension (3.1%)

Additional pension – ‘SERPS’ (3.1%)

Manx State Pension – up to full amount (3.1%)

Manx State Pension – protected amounts (3.1%)

• Family/Other 

Child Benefit (5.0%) 

Employed Person’s Allowance – basic allowances and allowances for children (5.0%)

• Disability

Carer’s Allowance (15.0%)

Attendance Allowance (5.0%) 

Disability Living Allowance (5.0% generally, 3.1% for higher rate mobility component)

Income Support Carer Premium (26.4%)

Income Support Disability and Disabled Child Premiums (5.0%)

Nursing Care Contribution (3.1%)

• The increase in Carer’s Allowance will benefit around 550 carers.

• Around 19,000 pensioners will see their State Pension increased by 3.1%.

Per Person

Total gross spending projected for 2022-23 equates to around £14,044 per head for every member of the island’s population, including children.

This per-person figure includes:

• £4,214 for Social Security payments such as the State Pension, Income Support and Child Benefit and allocation of National Insurance funds towards the NHS
• £3,559 for Health and Social Care Services, of which £1,406 relates to Nobles Hospital, £872 for Primary Care, £564 for Social Care Services, £199 for providing free or subsidised prescriptions or drugs and £237 for treating Manx patients in the United Kingdom
• £1,455 for Education, including £128 for University Fees
• £1,384 for former Government employee pensions, of which around £401 comes from current employee contributions
• £450 for the Police, Fire, Prison and other parts of the Department of Home Affairs
• £239 for supporting the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture, including the Office of Fair Trading and the Road Transport Licencing Committee
• £121 Net expenditure (after income) for Public Transport and Heritage Railways
• £83 for Sports, Recreation and Youth Services, including subsidising regional swimming pools