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Fuel duty is frozen for the seventh successive year, which should save the average car driver in Northern Ireland £10 each time they fill their tank. The National Living Wage is increasing from £7.20 to £7.50.

I am delighted to be able to formally launch the consultation on refreshing Defence Industrial Policy Refresh. This is a milestone in meeting our SDSR15 commitment and presents a unique opportunity for our defence industry, academics and non-traditional defence suppliers to make a valuable contribution to the continuing development of our Industrial Policy.

As part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 (SDSR15), the Government committed to develop a refreshed defence industrial policy. This will make clear that competition remains our preferred approach, delivering value for money and incentivising an innovative and productive industrial base. It will outline the further action we will take to help the UK’s defence and security industries, in particular Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs), to grow and compete successfully. The development of this policy is an important contribution to the new National Security Objective to promote our prosperity and is closely linked with other work in the MOD to promote innovation, exports and skills.

The detail will be announced at the Budget, but we expect our new Investment Bond will have an interest rate of around 2.2% gross and a term of 3 years.

An economy which, through the hard work of the British people, has bounced back from the depths of recession.