08 Jul 2020Chancellor Rishi Sunak will deliver the Summer Economic Update today, in which he will announce measures to help boost the UK economy following the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. The Chancellor is expected to cut taxes in order to help the UK economy recover following the COVID-19 lockdown. Experts predict that the Chancellor will reduce VAT for businesses in the hospitality sector and outline further plans to increase investment in training and apprenticeship schemes. Many also anticipate a six-month stamp duty holiday which would see the stamp duty threshold raised temporarily from £125,000 to between £300,000 and £500,000. Additionally, the government recently announced a £1.6 billion bespoke package of loans and grants to help the UK's arts and heritage sector recover from the lockdown. The Chancellor is expected to provide funds to other sectors in order to support growing industries. Some also believe that a so-called 'wealth tax' could be announced by the Chancellor. This would take the form of a levy on individuals' personal wealth. The Summer Economic Update will be delivered at midday today. We will keep you up to date on the key announcements.