The MP for St Albans has praised the autumn Budget for helping young people get on the property ladder.

Chancellor Philip Hammond presented his Budget to Parliament on Wednesday, November 22, which outlined the Government’s latest economic plan.

Some of the highlights included scrapping Stamp Duty Land Tax on homes under £300,000 for first-buyers and putting aside £3 billion to prepare Britain for Brexit.

The National Living Wage for those aged 25 and over will increase from £7.50 per hour to £7.83 per hour and £1.5bn will also be provided upfront to support the rollout of Universal Credit.

MP Anne Main believes the Stamp duty will be “effective” in helping young people who want to by property.

She said: “This is a very welcome announcement by the chancellor. I’ve been saying for some time that we need to help young people get on the ladder, and I’m glad that the chancellor recognised our pleas for help.

“For first-time buyers in St Albans, this is a significant saving that will help them realise their dream of owning their own home. There are still many challenges ahead in housing, but this is an important step.

“Recently I’ve asked the treasury questions on stamp duty and found that, whilst the amount of revenue has increased, transactions have actually gone down. These changes make economic sense, as there is good evidence to suggest that this will increase transactions. More important, however, is helping people realise their aspiration of homeownership.”

Ms Main also welcomed announcements on business rates to switch to the lower CPI rate of inflation from RPI, and also freezing beer duty.

She added: “The chancellor has made changes that will help our businesses, particularly small enterprises. But there are still challenges ahead.

“Freezing beer duty and extending the rates discount on pubs is welcome, but we must continue to look at how we ease the burden of our pubs in high-value areas.”

Hitchin and Harpenden MP Bim Afolami has been contacted for a comment but has not yet responded.