Instant reaction

Comment from Richard Collier-Keywood
13:35:00 GMT
"We welcome the fact that there were very few major changes announced in the Budget, although there are a significant number of pre-announced changes which taxpayers will have to deal with. We now await further details to see if the Chancellor has lived up to his promise to start simplifying the tax system."

Comment from Kevin Nicholson
13:26:00 GMT
"Enterprise is created by governments providing a stable economy, clarity around the rules and consistency in approach to those rules", says Kevin Nicholson, head of entrepreneurs and private companies. "We all want to see an enterprise economy but history shows that this isn't created by initiatives or incentives. We have a new investment allowance coming in and an entrepreneurs relief to mitigate the changes to the CGT regime. Lets stop and have a long-term review of the taxation of small and growing business which creates a stable and simple regime for all."

Comment from Valerie Smart
13:23:00 GMT
In response to the Chancellor climate change announcements, Valerie Smart, head of private clients in Scotland, says: "Scotland is ideally placed to expand into windfarms and other clean energy-generating methods. It should be a major beneficiary of the additional carbon trading opportunity proposals."

Comment from Nick McChesney
13:21:00 GMT
"It is reassuring to the see the Chancellor signal towards a more long-term programme for dealing with climate change through the tax system."

Comment from Kevin Nicholson
13:15:00 GMT
Kevin Nicholson, head of entrepreneurs and private companies, comments: "The changes to encourage enterprise come at an odd time. They follow the recent CGT changes and the introduction of the income shifting rules, which will create an administrative headache for thousands of entrepreneurial companies. This comes on the back of a removal of the 0% tax charge to encourage start-up companies which was previously heralded as a boost for enterprise."

Comment from Richard Collier-Keywood
13:12:00 GMT
"We welcome the Chancellor's commitment to stability and certainty in business but are disappointed that there were no further measures to help large businesses, beyond the cut in the rate of corporation tax to 28% announced last year."

Comment from Kevin Nicholson
13:08:00 GMT
"The failure to delay on the implementation of the non-dom rules is disappointing, says Kevin Nicholson, head of entrepreneurs and private companies. This has created real uncertainty in the non-dom community which will have a long-term effect on the number of wealthy business people and patrons of the arts coming to the UK. We will not know the full impact of these changes for some time but they will undoubtedly reduce the attractiveness and competitiveness of the UK for this important group of wealth creators."

Comment from John Hawksworth
12:47:00 GMT
John Hawksworth, head of macroeconomics, comments: "As expected, the Chancellor has increased his public borrowing forecast for 2008/9 from 36 billion pounds to 43 billion pounds, and for 2009/10 from 31 billion pounds to 38 billion pounds. But if growth is slower than the Treasury projects, then borrowing could easily rise above these levels."

Comment from John Hawksworth
12:41:00 GMT
"As expected the Chancellor has reduced his growth forecast for 2008 from 2-2.5 percent to 1.75-2.25 percent. But the risks to this new growth projection are still weighted to the downside given the slowing housing market and the squeeze on household finances from high debt levels and rising food and energy prices", says John Hawksworth UK head of macroeconomics.