Budget 2016: George Osborne announces sugar tax on soft drinks companies - as it happened

Chancellor signals new round of austerity measures

Osborne is expected to renew his commitment to austerity (Getty Images)

Here are the latest updates:

• Osborne announces sugar tax on soft drinks companies
• George Osborne 'takes £4.4bn from disabled people to fund tax breaks for rich'
• Use our calculator to work out how your taxes have changed
• Four things George Osborne didn’t want you to know from the Budget
• From corporation tax to stamp duty - the key measures for business at a glance
• George Osborne's speech – what he said and what he meant
• George Osborne put big business ahead of children and disabled people in his Budget, charities say
• John McDonnell: Osborne has achieved almost nothing of what he promised in 2010 
• What is the Budget?

Please allow a moment for the live blog to load

Cuts to disability benefits and forcing schools to become academies are just some of the measures George Osborne has announced in his Budget.

A faltering stock market and slow economic growth are among the challenges the Chancellor has faced since the Autumn Statement in November.

Here are three groups of people that look set to lose out:

Those on disability benefits see their benefits payments reduced by £55 a week.

The decision by Ministers to remove the PIP – Personal Independence Payment – benefits from more than 600,000 disabled people over the next five years, saving around £1 billion a year, is expected to be used to cut tax for the middle-class.

Local-authority run schools will be forced to become academies by 2020, according to reports.

Academies have more powers over their own budgets, curriculum, the hiring of staff, term times, and the length of school day. But Ofsted figures analysed in 2010 showed that many academies were performing worse than other local-authority maintained schools.

Drinkers and smokers will face higher duties. Drink duties will rise with inflation. An above-inflation duty will be pushed through on cigarettes.

[16 March 2016 08:18 · Hazel Sheffield]

Good morning and welcome to the Independent's live blog of the Budget 2016.

Here are the timings for today:

12.30-40 - Chancellor stands up 

1.30 - Chancellor sits down

[16 March 2016 08:45 · Paul Brand]

Ministers starting to arrive for pre-budget cabinet. Here's Culture Sec. @GMB

[16 March 2016 08:45 · Paul Brand]

Michael Gove winning the quickest arrival award. #Budget2016

[16 March 2016 08:45 · Paul Brand]

Business Sec arrives for pre-budget cabinet. Predictably ignoring my shouts. @GMB #Budget2016

[16 March 2016 08:47 · Hazel Sheffield]

As ministers arrive at number 10, RBS is thinking about how many Budget surpluses a 40-year-old Briton has seen in their lifetime. 

RBS Economics

@RBS_Economics

The median Briton (40 years old) has seen 5 budget surpluses in their lifetime. #Budget2016https://t.co/QI1IsTN7jp

8:17 AM - 16 Mar 2016

• Reply
• Retweet
• Favorite

[16 March 2016 08:49 · Hazel Sheffield]

And a reminder about where the cuts have come from so far 

RBS Economics

@RBS_Economics

A reminder of where deficit reduction has come from so far - capital spending and public services. #Budget2016https://t.co/UA4ThyWmvn

8:39 AM - 16 Mar 2016

• Reply
• Retweet
• Favorite

[16 March 2016 09:03 · simon read]

Time for action on the high street scandal that makes the poor pay more for less independent.co.uk/money/the-high… report in today's @theipaper

[16 March 2016 09:08 · Ben Chu]

Big qs for #Budget2016 . When will new spending cuts fall? Will debt target be let go? Will OBR judge slowdown as cyclical or structural?

[16 March 2016 09:13 · Ben Chu]

Chancellor apparently making major announcement about academies in #Budget2016 ? Why? Whitehall land grab? Desperation for "good news"?

[16 March 2016 09:20 · simon read]

Today is @George_Osborne 's eighth Budget. "On the eighth day machine just got upset..." youtube.com/watch?v=8ALdL8…