Website search behaviour reveals marked concerns ahead of Autumn Budget
New research by Prime Accountants Group highlights a significant increase in Google searches on key financial topics, indicating heightened public concern as the Autumn Budget approaches.
Prime Accountants Group analysed Google search trends related to the main concerns of its clients, as they brace themselves for the first Budget under the new Labour government on October 30.
Paislei Godley (pictured), associate director at Prime, said there was an “unprecedented” level of fear around the UK’s final fiscal showpiece of 2024.
Potential changes to Capital Gains Tax (CGT) – tax paid on the profits of the sale of an asset that has increased in value – are one area of concern.
Prime’s research revealed searches for ‘Capital Gains Tax’ have reached a 12-month peak, with 195,000 searches on the topic in September alone and an increase of 25 per cent in the last quarter.
This follows press coverage suggesting the Treasury is considering raising CGT as high as 39 per cent.
Google searches for ‘IHT’ also reached a 12-month peak in September, reflecting growing concerns about changes to the current threshold of £325,000.
Paislei said: “The fear from businesses around this Budget is unprecedented and clients are concerned about every aspect, from potential changes to employment legislation and minimum wage to Capital Gains Tax and corporation tax.
“This is reflected across the country, with the Institute of Directors reporting a drop in business confidence in September to -38 per cent – the lowest since September 2022.
“We’re hearing from clients how the difficulties of running a business are mounting, with increased cost pressures squeezing margins, as every aspect has become more expensive and that is expected to increase.
“The uncertainties around the Budget mean that businesses are nervous about pushing forward with investment plans, purchases or recruitment because of potential changes to tax and access to funding.
“When weighing up the benefits of owning a business versus just being employed, there really is limited incentive.
“In contrast, there are a handful of clients who are just going ahead as planned, as they believe they just have to get on with it and be ahead of those that are holding back.”
Prime’s analysis also revealed ‘Pension lump sum’ as another term which was Googled to its peak in September, with Prime also seeing inquiries from clients spiking the same month.
Many of Prime’s clients expressed their plans to extract the pension lump sum ahead of the Autumn Budget for fear it will be taxed heavily.
However, wider concerns for pensions started earlier in the year with searches for ‘pension lifetime allowance’ peaking in June.
Despite Labour dropping plans to reintroduce a cap on how much can be saved in a pension before it is taxed, known as a Lifetime Allowance, individuals are still worried about changes that may be announced in the Budget.
The Prime team are also seeing a broad range of concerns from business leaders on how the Budget may impact bottom lines.
Searches for ‘corporation tax’ have increased by 23 per cent in September, with 64,000 searches being made.
Related searches for ‘marginal relief calculator’ have also seen a 110 per cent increase in searches, suggesting business owners are looking for new ways to reduce their tax bill to accommodate other changes from the Budget.
Searches for ‘business property relief’ and ‘BPR’ peaked in August, as business owners look to learn more about potential caps.
Paislei added: “The search behaviour reflects exactly what we’re seeing from clients.
“We are receiving many more questions around Capital Gains Tax, potential increased rates and what this means for them.
“We are also seeing clients wanting to move property into pension funds quickly to remove them from their estates for fear of Inheritance Tax changes.
“At Prime, we have clients who are rushing to get contracts exchanged ahead of the Budget in an attempt to secure a disposal for a lower amount before changes take effect.”
Prime Accountants Group has offices in Solihull, Birmingham and Coventry. For more information, search for Prime Accountants Group on LinkedIn.
