RISHI Sunak’s attempt to address the cost of living crisis in his spring statement will not have gone far enough for many people, it has been claimed.

The chancellor cut fuel duty by five pence per litre for a year and raised the threshold for paying National Insurance.

He also said the basic rate of income tax would be cut from 20p to 19p in the pound in 2024, the year of the next scheduled general election.

But Labour hit out at the chancellor for going ahead with a rise in the National Insurance rate and for not imposing a windfall tax on oil and gas companies.

The statement came as inflation hit a 30-year high of 6.2 per cent and the Office for Budget Responsibility said households faced the biggest fall in living standards since records began.

Dorset Chamber chief executive Ian Girling said: “The chancellor’s spring statement won’t have gone far enough for some businesses in Dorset.

“The five pence cut in fuel duty, while welcome, may be a drop in the ocean for hard-pressed firms in sectors most exposed to transport costs.

“Many businesses would have preferred to have seen the National Insurance rise scrapped completely rather than the threshold increased and the Employment Allowance for smaller businesses increased from £4,000 to £5,000.”

He added: “While proposed support due to be consulted upon under a new tax plan is very welcome, it does little to help immediately when inflation is rising to its highest level in 30 years and businesses remain in the grip of a costs crisis.

“Policies such as the scrapping of VAT on energy efficiency measures are generally welcome, while the proposed income tax reduction by 2024 appears a very long way off when householders are struggling to make ends meet today.”

Chris Downing, partner with accountancy firm Azets in Poole, said: “There was a clear message that the cost of living was still going to be painful, with a few changes aimed at the lower paid to help that position.

“Increasing the limit before an employee pays National Insurance Contributions (NIC) to match the Income Tax personal allowance of £12,570 from July will be a welcome tax saving for those on lower incomes. Employers will benefit – to a degree – from the increase of the Annual Employment Allowance from £4,000 to £5,000 from April.”

Simon Boyd, managing director of John Reid & Sons (Strucsteel) in Christchurch, said: “I would have preferred for the chancellor to have been much bolder in the spring statement.

“His direction of travel was correct but he failed to go the whole distance when it came to fuel duty and National Insurance.

“A 10 per cent reduction or 16 pence per litre cut in fuel duty was the minimum required, rather than the five per cent announced by the chancellor.

“Scrapping of the proposed National Insurance rise would have achieved far more to alleviate cost pressures on businesses than raising the threshold and upping the Employment Allowance for smaller businesses from £4,000 to £5,000.”

Neil Andrews, managing partner with Poole-based Coles Miller Solicitors, said: “The chancellor had room to make some immediate changes to help us all but has chosen to plan to help in the future.

“The changes to fuel duty and the National Insurance personal allowance will be welcome but will do little to offset the current and predicted rate of inflation. And will we see fuel duty cuts reflected at the pumps?”

He added: “Sotto voce cries of ‘Is that it?’ were heard during the Chancellor’s speech. Is this the summary for this Spring Statement?”

Alistair Aitken, head of sales at Passenger in Bournemouth, which provides apps and websites for the public sector, said the chancellor had cut fuel duty even though it had a National Bus Strategy to get people onto public transport.

“What we need to remind people is that public transport exists as a convenient, reliable, and more sustainable option,” he said.

“Granted not every area has access to good public transport links, but operators, local transport authorities, and third-party suppliers are working exceptionally hard to address this – and strong progress has been made already.”