Tax break for businesses made permanent

A tax break which allows businesses to deduct the full cost of investing in machinery and equipment from their tax bill has been made permanent.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced the policy in his Autumn Statement, calling it the "largest business tax cut in modern British history".

The move comes after calls from some business groups to extend the policy, which had been due to end in 2026.

It aims to encourage firms to invest and in turn lead to economic growth.

Mr Hunt said the policy - known as "full-expensing" - would mean that for every million pounds a company invests, it would get £250,000 off their tax bill in the same year.

He claimed big business groups and bosses from the likes of BT, Siemens and Bosch had said making the policy permanent would be the "single most transformational thing I could do for business investment and growth".

Mr Hunt added the move would cost £11bn per year.