Budget 2016: the winners and the losers

There was good news for savers, motorists and small companies when Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne stood up to give his eighth Budget speech today.

But did the Chancellor announce changes that will make your life easier or harder? Let's find out.

AND THE WINNERS ARE...
Major announcements included a higher tax-free personal allowance and a better deal for ISA savers.

Savers
The amount you can save into a tax-efficient ISA is to rise to £20,000 next year.

Anyone under 40 will also be able to open a lifetime ISA and pay in up to £4,000 a year. For every £4 you save, the government will give you £1.

Motorists
Fuel duty is to be frozen once again, Osborne said. Drivers will also be relieved to see the insurance premium tax rate rising by just 0.5%, as a bigger hike was expected.

Small companies
The threshold for small business rates will rise from £6,000 to a maximum of £15,000. Osborne claims this means a "typical corner shop" will pay no business rates.

Commercial stamp duty is also to be cut for small firms.

Low earners
The tax-free personal allowance is increasing to £11,500. This will give 31m people a tax cut, Osborne said.

The higher rate threshold will also rise to £45,000 from April next year, while low earners should also benefit from the new Help to Save scheme.

​Drinkers
Duty on beer, spirits and cider is to be frozen. Other alcohol duties will rise in line with inflation.

People in flood-risk areas
Osborne announced an extra £700 million for resilience and flood defences. The money will be raised by higher insurance premium taxes.

Welsh commuters
From 2018, the price of the tolls on the Severn crossings between England and Wales are to be halved.

North Sea Oil companies
Osborne announced a raft of proposals designed to help Scotland's struggling oil industry, including the scrapping of petroleum revenue tax.

ON THE LOSING TEAM...
The share prices of a number of big soft drinks companies plummeted on the announcement of a new "sugar tax" on fizzy drinks.

Soft drinks industry
Osborne announced a new £520 million levy on sugary drinks that he believes are one of the causes of obesity among young people.

The so-called sugar tax will be introduced in two years time, and the money raised will help to fund sport in primary schools and after-school activities in secondary schools that will be voluntary for schools but compulsory for pupils.

Disabled people
Osborne said today that the Conservative government would spend more in real terms on disability payments than any Labour administration. But changes to the Personal Independence Payment – which goes towards extra costs caused by long-term ill health or disability for those aged 16 to 64 – mean around 200,000 disabled people will be removed from the system entirely.

Another 400,000 people will see their benefits cut from the enhanced £82 a week to the standard £55.

Smokers
Taxes will increase for cigarettes, while taxes on hand-rolled tobacco will rise by a further 3%.

Corporate tax evaders
The Chancellor plans to cap interest deductibility at 30% for multinationals that borrow here and then offset the payments against tax.

These reforms will raise £9 billion from large firms and help to create a more modern tax system, he said.

On the flip side, reducing corporation tax to 17% indicates the government is keen to attract more multinational companies to the UK.

Brexit campaigners
Osborne told MPs that the Office for Budget Responsibility believes Britain leaving the European Union (EU) would lead to "disruptive uncertainty".