BUDGET 2016: Osborne stuns MPs by announcing a sugar tax on soft drinks, 'lifetime ISAs' and plans to turn EVERY school into an academy (and gets an eyeful from Theresa)

• Growth forecasts from the OBR are sharply down and debt has not fallen
• But Osborne said there would still be a £10billion surplus by 2020 
• He announced a sugar tax on soft drinks to be imposed in two years time 
• Overhaul of corporation tax cutting rate but raising £9bn from big firms  
• Chancellor has already revealed £1.5billion to fund a longer school day
• He also backed new railways, roads and a tunnel under the Pennines
• Fuel, beer and spirits duty all frozen but wine and cigarette taxes up   

By Tim Sculthorpe, Mailonline Deputy Political Editor and Matt Dathan, Mailonline Political Correspondent

George Osborne has unveiled a Budget he says puts the 'next generation first' as he revealed a sugar tax on soft drinks, a lifetime of tax free savings for the young and £1.5billion for schools.

The Chancellor announced grim figures on economic growth and the public finances and added the independent Office for Budget Responsibility had warned Brexit would only slow the economy.  

The sugar tax, which is due to be imposed on the soft drinks industry in two years, was the surprise announcement in the Chancellor's package.

The delay is give manufacturers time to change recipes and slash sugar content but the new tax is still expected to raise £500million - money to be ploughed into school sport.

Mr Osborne said his 'lifetime ISA' was the 'equivalent of tax free savings into a pension.  

Chancellor George Osborne announced a string of policies today which he said would make sure Britain was ready for the next generation 

In other major giveaway, Mr Osborne revealed a big rise in the threshold for the 40p income tax rate to £45,000 - lifting half a million people out of the higher rate and saving them £400 a year.

Some 31 million earners will benefit from a further rise in the personal allowance to £11,500 from next year.

In his other major announcements, Mr Osborne revealed: 

• £700million in new flood defences for areas hit by the winter storms paid for by an increase to the insurance premium tax 
• Hundreds of millions of support for infrastructure projects in the north including motorway upgrades, a new High Speed 3 rail link between Manchester and Leeds and a tunnel under the Pennines
• Fuel duty will be frozen again after protests from Tory backbenchers about a possible rise after the collapse in the oil price 
• Beer and whisky duties will be frozen but wine and tobacco will be increased

Mr Osborne said: 'This is our Budget: one that reaches a surplus so the next generation doesn't have to pay our debts. One that reforms our tax system so that the next generation inherits a strong economy. 

'One that takes the imaginative steps so that the next generation is better educated.

'One that takes bold decisions so that our children grow up fit and healthy.

'This is a Budget that gets investors investing, savers saving, businesses doing business; so that we build for working people a low tax, enterprise Britain; secure at home, strong in the world.

'I commend to the House a Budget that puts the next generation first.'

BUDGET 2016 AT-A-GLANCE 

The key announcements made by George Osborne included:

• A sugar tax will be imposed on soft drinks in two years time.
• £1.5billion in new schools funding to extend the school day and turn all state run schools into academies free of local authority control. 
• Another increase to the personal allowance which protect a chunk of income from tax. It is currently £11,000 and will increase to £11,500.
• The 40p tax threshold will rise to £45,000, offering a £400 tax cut to half a million middle earners. 
• £80million will be spent on Crossrail 2 as Mr Osborne announces a new railway to run north-south across London. The National Infrastructure Commission has said it should open in 2033.
• £60million will be handed to High Speed 3 which is intended to link Leeds and Manchester and cut journey times. 
• £75million to explore options for an 18-mile Trans-Pennine road tunnel between Sheffield and Manchester.
• £1.2billion fund for brownfield sites to enable the building of 30,000 'starter homes' for first time buyers. 
• Low earners who save £50 a month for four years will be handed £1,200.
• £14million will be spent on a national mentoring scheme to turn around the lives of 25,000 struggling teenagers. 
• GDP growth forecasts were sharply downgraded after the Chancellor warned of the impact of the Chinese slowdown and other global factors. 
• £1.2billion cut from disability living allowance.
• Insurance Premium Tax to rise, adding up to £100 a year to the bill for a home-owning family with two cars, a pet and medical insurance. The money raised will pay for new flood defences.
• Fuel duty was frozen for another year.
• A new crackdown on tax avoidance by multinational companies will raise £9billion - £7billion of which will be handed back to small firms. 

Outlining the new sugar tax, Mr Osborne said: 'He said: 'I'm not prepared to look back at my time here in this Parliament doing this job and say to my children's generation: ''I'm sorry, we knew there was a problem with sugary drinks, we knew it caused disease but we ducked the difficult decisions and we did nothing''.

'So today I can announce that we will introduce a new sugar levy on the soft drinks industry.

'It will levied on the companies; it will be introduced in two-years' time to give companies plenty of space to change their product mix.

'It will be assessed on the volume of the sugar, sweet and drinks they produce or import; there will be two bands: one for total sugar content above five grams per 100ml, a second higher band for the most sugary drinks with more than 8 grams per 100ml.' 

Launching his reply, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the Budget was the 'culmination of six years of failure.'

Other major announcements by Mr Osborne included a freeze on fuel duty - a major concession to his backbench MPs in the face of deep party splits over the EU referendum.

Beer, cider and spirits will also have their duties frozen - but wine and cigarettes will become more expensive.

Mr Osborne's Budget was set against grim statistics from the Office for Budget Responsibility. 

He began his Budget by telling the Commons the economy was still 'on course for a surplus' and that Britain was well prepared to tackle the coming 'storm clouds'.

As he began his eighth Budget statement as Chancellor, Mr Osborne struck an optimistic note and insisted 'we choose the long term and choose to put the next generation first'.

The Chancellor told MPs growth forecasts were sharply down on his forecast in November while borrowing is higher than expected.

He said both the deficit and debt forecasts were higher than in November. 

He said that when he first entered the Treasury in 2010 Britain was borrowing £1 in every £4 but now it is borrowing just £1 in £14.

The budget watchdog has revised down Britain's economic growth, predicting it will grow 0.2 per cent smaller than previously predicted.

It predicts 2 per cent growth for this year, then 2.2 per cent in 2017, falling back to 2.1 per cent growth for the two following years. But Mr Osborne boasted that international forecasts still predicted the UK to grow faster this year than any other advanced economy in the world. 

Mr Osborne risked causing anger among his backbench MPs with a warning from the OBR that leaving the EU would lead to 'disruptive uncertainty'.

Mr Osborne today revealed slashed growth forecasts and said the Office for Budget Responsibility had warned a Brexit vote would make the situation worse

Mr Osborne had to announce today, yellow bars, that in the next three years the deficit as a share of GDP would be higher than he planned in November, red bars. This means borrowing is higher - but the Chancellor said he would still achieve a deficit by 2019/20

Quoting advice from the budget watchdog, the Chancellor said: 'The OBR say this: 'There appears to be a greater consensus that a vote to leave would result in a period of potentially disruptive uncertainty.'

'I believe we should not put at risk all the hard work the British people have done to make our economy strong again,' Mr Osborne said. 

Mr Osborne admitted he had broken his target of making debt lower as a share of GDP but told MPs that in cash terms it was down £9billion.

But Mr Osborne said: 'I report on a deficit down by two thirds, falling each year and I can report today on course for a budget surplus.'

Elsewhere in his Budget, Mr Osborne announced £700million for new flood defences and declared he was 'rebalancing the country' with a raft of infrastructure announcements.

Jeremy Corbyn blasted the Budget in his response, left, but the remarks appeared to pain Mr Osborne as he listened to the Labour leader's intervention 

The new flood money will be raised via a second increase to the insurance premium tax in the space of a year. 

Mr Osborne told MPs the money will provide a 'boost to our resilience and flood defences' after parts of northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland were hit with the worst flooding in a generation over Christmas. 

Announcing a raft of infrastructure projects - mostly in the north but including Crossrail 2 in London - Mr Osborne said he was 'rebalancing the country' by 'building the roads and laying the tracks' essential to the northern powerhouse. 

Mr Osborne announced corporation tax will be cut to 17 per cent by April 2020 - which he said showed Britain was 'blazing a trail' in the world.

He promised a 'level playing field' for large and small businesses as he announced a new tax crackdown on multinationals. 

Mr Osborne and Home Secretary Theresa May appeared to share an awkward moment as Mr Osborne wrapped up his Budget today 

After a bruising row over Google's tax bill, the Chancellor unveiled a string of new measures to tackle tax avoidance by firms with profits of more than £5million.

He said it would create a 'modern tax code' that would raise an extra £9billion for the exchequer - and promised to hand £7billion of it to small firms. 

Mr Osborne announced he is raising to £15,000 the threshold for business tax relief, which he said will mean 600,000 small businesses will pay nothing in business rates and 250,000 will see them fall. 

'I am more than doubling it and more than doubling it permanently.' 

He said: 'This is a Budget which gets rid of loopholes for multinationals. And gets rid of tax for small businesses. A £7bn tax cut, for our nation of shopkeepers. A tax system that says to the world: we're open for business.

'This is a Government that's on your side.' 

The Chancellor announced a series of actions to tackle tax avoidance and evasion totalling £12 billion, including moves to end the use of 'personal service companies' by public sector employees to minimise their tax liabilities.

The Chancellor tweeted that his Budget was ready ahead of his Commons statement today promising it would offer 'long term solutions to long term problems' 

Chancellor George Osborne emerged from No 11 Downing Street today ready to deliver his latest Budget to MPs at 12.30pm 

A number of TV stars – including Jeremy Paxman - have faced criticism for their use of the tax loophole. 

Other announcements in Mr Osborne's Budget included a halving of tolls on the Severn Bridges. 

EX-GOLDMAN SACHS CHIEF FLANKS GEORGE OSBORNE AS HE PRESENTS HIS EIGHTH BUDGET  

Jim O'Neill of Gatley (pictured third from the right) worked at investment bank Goldman Sachs for 18 years before being appointed to the House of Lords and made a government minister in the Treasury. He is joined on the step of Number 11 by: (left to right) Tory MP Jake Berry, ministerial aide and Tory MP Conor Burns, Economic Secretary to the Treasury Harriett Baldwin, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Greg Hands, Chancellor George Osborne, Lord O'Neill, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury Damian Hinds and Financial Secretary to the Treasury David Gauke 

George Osborne was flanked by a former Goldman Sachs chief as he showed off his eighth Budget outside Number 11 this morning. 

Lord O'Neill of Gatley is the Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, meaning he is responsible for the Northern Powerhouse project, devolution to Britain's cities, infrastructure and industry policy and corporate finance. 

He was appointed to the House of Lords in May last year, allowing him to join the Government as a minister, proceeding Lord Deighton, also a former investment banker.

Lord O'Neill worked at the American investment bank Goldman Sachs for 18 years - from 1995 until April 2013, spending most of his time as chief economist. 

He is known for coining the term 'BRIC' in 2001 - calling for better emphasis to be placed on developing the major developing economies at the time of Brazil, Russia, India and China. 

But his previous role at Goldman Sachs has attracted controversy, with critics accusing Mr Osborne of being too afraid of radical banking reform due to appointing former investment bankers as his close aides.

He said: 'I've listened to the case made by Welsh colleagues and I can announce today that from 2018 we are going to halve the price of the tolls on the Severn Crossings,' he told to cheers from MPs.' 

And he revealed a £150million package for homelessness.  

The Chancellor said the surplus in 2020 would now be more than £10billion.  

The OBR predicts the economy and productivity will grow for each of the upcoming years but has revised down the figures due to a 'materially weaker' global economy.  

Prime Minister David Cameron earlier told the Cabinet the Budget was 'pro enterprise, pro infrastructure, pro devolution'.

And he told his ministers the Budget 'fully lives up to what this government is all about - transformation'. 

Ministers banged the Cabinet Table in Downing Street in appreciation of the plans, Mr Cameron's official spokeswoman said. 

The Chancellor's new school spending at the heart of today's Budget will come with details of how the Government will convert all council-run schools to academies by 2020.

The policy is part of what Mr Osborne will say is a plan to 'make sure every child gets the best start in life'.

The Chancellor will claim an end to the 'Victorian' practice of sending pupils home at 3.30pm in a bid to help British schools catch up with the best in the world.

Speaking ahead of his statement today, Mr Osborne said: 'It is simply unacceptable that Britain continues to sit too low down the global league tables for education.

'So I'm going to get on with finishing the job we started five years ago, to drive up standards and set schools free from the shackles of local bureaucracy.

'I also want to support secondary schools that want to offer their pupils longer school days with more extra-curricular activities like sport and art. 

'So we'll fund longer school days for at least 25 per cent of all secondary schools.

'Now is the time us to make the bold decisions and the big investments that will help the next generation, and that is what my Budget today will do.' 

Ahead of today's Budget the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the spending watchdog, warned David Cameron's decision to protect the health, schools, defence, pensions and international aid budgets means cuts will be deeper in areas such as local councils, courts, police and business support. 

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell, who was spotted catching the bus to Westminster today, accused Mr Osborne of planning a 'press stunt' instead of a Budget. 

He said: 'Take his education announcement, it won't address the real issue in our education system around increasing class sizes, shortage of teachers and lack of school places by just forcing schools to become academies.'

Mr McDonnell continued: 'With only one in four schools getting any additional money for the extra hour he's adding to the school day, we will see schools competing with each other for funding and parents will see their aspirations constrained.

'There's further uncertainty of funding when it comes to the infrastructure projects that the Chancellor is set to reannounce. Only one in five projects in his infrastructure pipeline is under construction.

'And when you put all this together with the possible tax cuts that are floated, which will be paid for by more stealth taxes and cruel cuts to the disabled, this Budget from George Osborne looks to not be about the future, but taking us back to the old politics of spin and little substance.' 

Liberal Democrat economic spokesperson Susan Kramer said: 'The Conservatives are not the Party of the builders, they are the Party of the press release.

'They endlessly re-announce the same projects but with no money to back them up and no shovels going into the ground.

'If he wanted to, George Osborne could really get Britain building again, by borrowing to fund real infrastructure investment.

'It is only because of his choice to achieve an overall surplus that this isn't happening. He'd rather reheat old announcements than put a fire under infrastructure investment.'

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, left leaving home this morning, will respond to Mr Osborne's plans immediately after the Budget speech. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell, right, was seen catching the bus to work today

Mr Osborne left for work today against a rather different backdrop to his Labour shadow Mr McDonnell as he prepared to deliver his Budget in the House of Commons 

Treasury sources confirmed ahead of the Budget that sweeping pension reform had been dropped given the deep split on the Conservative benches over the referendum on June 23 and a reluctance to start another internal row.

The Chancellor could still make changes to pension tax relief at today's statement, such as cutting the amount people can put into a pension tax free each year or making steeper the planned cut to the lifetime allowance. This is already falling from £1.25million to £1million. 

Today's Budget comes against a backdrop of Mr Osborne's continuing struggle to get the deficit down as he battles to stay on target to run a small surplus by the end of the decade.

The latest official figures revealed Mr Osborne had borrowed more than £60billion in the current financial year and he was warned in February that he had little room for manoeuvre to avoid breaching his targets.

IFS director Paul Johnson warned the protection of expensive departments such as the NHS and defence would mean deeper cuts elsewhere.

He told the BBC: 'When you are protecting health and pensions and overseas aid and schools and so on, that 50p out of every £100 looks more like £2 or £3 in every £100, at least, of the bits that you are not protecting.

'And of course those bits like local government spending and spending on justice and police and business and so on are the bits that already had or will already have had cuts of almost £1 in £3 by the end of the parliament.'

The deficit has defied George Osborne's attempts to get it down. His original plan had been to eliminate the gap between spending and revenue by 2015 and now hopes to reach a rare surplus - indicated in black - by 2020

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan, left, will be handed extra money at today's Budget, which was briefed to the Cabinet this morning. Seen arriving were Environment Secretary Liz Truss, centre, and Home Secretary Theresa May, right

Oliver Letwin, left, and Jeremy Hunt, right, both arrived in Downing Street today to hear Mr Osborne's Cabinet briefing on his plans

Osborne's budget for working people: Chancellor unveils tax giveaway for the middle classes as he raises 40p tax threshold to £45,000 and increases tax-free personal allowance 

George Osborne handed income tax cuts to millions of people today and eased the pressure on the middle class with a big increase in the 40p rate.

More than 30 million people will get a tax cut while 1.3 million of the lowest earners will be lifted out of income tax altogether when the personal allowance hits £11,500 in April 2017.

The middle class was handed a £400 a year tax cut with the change to the 40p rate as the Chancellor made a leap toward his manifesto pledge of lifting the threshold to £50,000.  

The personal allowance has steadily increased since 2010 and will reach £11,000 in April this year, while the 40p rate currently starts at £42,385.

George Osborne said the changes meant basic rate taxpayers will be paying over £1,000 less income tax than when he became Chancellor.

The increase in the higher rate threshold would take more than 500,000 people out of the 40p band.

'It's the biggest above-inflation cash increase since Nigel Lawson introduced the 40p rate almost 30 years ago,' Mr Osborne said.

'We were elected as a government for working people and we have delivered a Budget for working people.'

The increases in the personal allowance and 40p threshold will cost the Exchequer more than £2 billion in lost income tax receipts in 2017/18.

The self-employed were also given a tax cut, as Mr Osborne scrapped class 2 National Insurance contributions (NICs) from 2018.

'That's a simpler tax system and a tax cut of over £130 for each of Britain's three million-strong army of the self-employed,' Mr Osborne said.

Young savers are handed up to £1,000 a year Budget bonus with new Lifetime Isa as part of Osborne's offer to the 'next generation'

Young workers will no longer have to choose between saving for a home or retirement, as the Chancellor revealed a new Lifetime Isa with an up to £1,000 a year bonus in his Budget.

LOW EARNERS HANDED A FREE £1,200 IF THEY CAN SAVE £50 A MONTH FOR FOUR YEARS 

The savings scheme in today's Budget will offer a bonus of £1,200 to low earners 

George Osborne will today detail plans to hand a £1,200 bonus to low earners who save regularly.

Trailed by David Cameron earlier this week, the Help to Save policy is aimed at helping workers on tax credits or universal credit to build up a savings pot of £3,600.

Labour has claim the Government stole the idea five years after claiming an identical Labour policy was unaffordable.

Ahead of today's Budget, Mr Osborne said: 'This government is determined to improve the life chances of the poorest in our society and our new Help to Save scheme will mean millions of low income savers across the country could now receive a Government bonus of up to £1,200 to help them build up their savings.

'Alongside our new National Living Wage, we're also boosting pay for young workers with increases in the National Minimum Wage - the next step for the next generation as we move to a higher wage society.'

Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert.com, said: 'Already, many people make the mistake of trying to save when they are in debt and yet the cost of debt for most usually vastly outweighs the gain of saving.

'My worry with Help to Save - especially because of the long delay before people get the bonus - is that people may start to think that everyone should put aside money each month, when the truth is for many with expensive debts, especially payday loans, that's a bad idea.' 

The new Lifetime Isa, which can be invested in stocks and shares or cash savings, will be launched next April to help people aged 18 to 40 get a foot on the housing ladder, without hindering their efforts to put aside money for their pension

Savers can tap into their bonus pot if they use some or all of the money to buy their first home, or wait until they are 60 to withdraw cash and their bonus tax-free, according to George Osborne, who unveiled the measure in today's Budget.

The savings and the bonus can be used towards a deposit on a first home worth up to £450,000 - but the deal allows two first-time buyers to both earn bonuses then pool their resources to buy a home.

Those aged under 40 can open a Lifetime Isa and save up to £4,000 a year into it to get a maximum £1,000 bonus. They will get this for every year that they save money until age 50.

The Chancellor also delivered a huge hike in the overall annual Isa allowance from £15,000 to £20,000, with the new Lifetime Isa pot falling under this umbrella.

Those with a Help to Buy can transfer those savings into a Lifetime Isa when they are launched in 2017, or continue saving into both. However, you can only use the bonus from one to buy a house.

Those who prefer to use the allowance to save for retirement, can take out all the savings tax-free when they are 60 and get their Lifetime Isa bonus paid out.

But there will be fairly stiff penalties for making withdrawals from a Lifetime Isa for anything other than buying a home.

You can cash in at any time before you turn 60, but you lose the government bonus and any interest or growth on this, plus savers doing this will have to pay a 5 per cent charge. 

The Treasury confirmed to This is Money that all savers aged under 40 will be able to open a Lifetime Isa, even those who already own a home and are saving into a pension.

This opens up the door for investors who can find the money to benefit from both tax relief on pension contributions and the bonus on a Lifetime Isa

However, only saving for retirement through a Lifetime Isa could be less attractive than an ordinary pension where you save from untaxed income - the Government pays tax relief at your 20 per cent, 40 per cent or 45 per cent income tax rate.

Chancellor George Osborne was recently forced to ditch radical plans to axe tax relief and introduce a Pensions Isa for everyone, for fear of a backlash from voters ahead of the Brexit referendum.

The Lifetime Isa likely to be see as a half-way measure, possibly laying the groundwork for extending it once the EU referendum is over. 

George Osborne sends shares in soft drink firms PLUNGING within moment of his announcement of a sugar tax on soft drinks

George Osborne today announced a 25p per litre sugar tax on fizzy drinks from 2018 - and within seconds sent shares in the soft drinks industry plummeting.

Campaigners including Jamie Oliver were celebrating the Chancellor's Budget decision, which will raise an estimated £520 million a year.

Share prices in Coca-Cola's British arm, Britvic, which makes 7 Up, Robinsons squash and Tango, and Irn-Bru maker A.G. Barr fell by up to 27p per share within seconds of the announcement.

Shares in  Coca Cola UK, whose drinks would be subject to a levy, also slumped by 20p after Mr Osborne's announcement

Jolt: Shares in soft drink giant Britvic, left, which makes Tango, right, R. White's Lemonade, and Robinsons squash, saw its share price fall more than 20p the moment George Osborne announced the sugar tax

The NHS has hailed the decision as brave but some have branded it a tax on Britain's poor.

The tax will be imposed on soft drinks companies producing drinks containing more than a teaspoon of added sugar per 100ml.

The proposed tax will be levied in two bands:

• A higher band for the most sugary drinks with more than 8 grammes per 100 millilitres, which includes Coca Cola, Red Bull and Irn-Bru - adding 8p to the price of a can
• A lower band for drinks above 5 grammes per 100 millilitres, which includes Fanta and Sprite - adding around 5p to a can
• Pure fruit juices and milk-based drinks are exempt 

Chef Jamie Oliver, a vigorous campaigner for a sugar tax, said the Chancellor's announcement that he will tax the soft drinks industry was 'amazing news'.

He posted on Instagram: 'We did it guys !! We did it !!! A sugar levy on sugary sweetened drinks ... A profound move that will ripple around the world ... business cannot come between our kids health !! Our kids health comes first ... Bold, brave, logical and supported by all the right people ... now bring on the whole strategy soon to come ... Amazing news.'

Chef Jamie Oliver, a vigorous campaigner for a sugar tax, said the Chancellor's announcement that he will tax the soft drinks industry was 'amazing news'

Mr Osborne said the estimated £520 million a year raised will be spent on doubling funding for sport in primary schools.

The levy will be introduced in two years' time, to give companies time to adapt products to reduce their sugar content.

Pure fruit juices and milk-based drinks will be excluded, and the smallest producers will have an exemption from the scheme.

Mr Osborne said that, at present, five-year-old children are consuming their bodyweight in sugar every year and experts predict that within a generation more than half of all boys and 70 per cent of girls could be overweight or obese. 

George Osborne promises to make Britain 'fit for the future' as he uses the Budget to announce new railways, upgraded motorways and Europe's longest road tunnel 

George Osborne will today promise to offer Britain 'long term solutions to long term problems' when he presents his Budget.

At the centre of his plans will be a raft of policies to deliver major new pieces of infrastructure, including £60million to develop High Speed 3, £80million for Crossrail 2 and £75million to explore a road tunnel under the Pennines.

Mr Osborne will place a new high speed rail link between Manchester and Leeds and the 18-mile road tunnel linking Manchester and Sheffield at the heart of his plans for the Northern Powerhouse. 

The projects - which are all in the early phases of development - will all cost billions more to build in the coming decades.

The announced plans include a new High Speed 3 railway linking Manchester and Leeds, marked with a red dotted line, a road tunnel linking Manchester to Sheffield, the black dotted line, and Crossrail 2 in London, marked in yellow, inset

But Mr Osborne has insisted 'long term solutions' are crucial for the country.  

Ahead of today's statement, he said: 'In the Budget, we are not going to go for short term fixes in this uncertain world, we are going top have long term solutions to Britain's long term problems and the Budget is going to make sure Britain is fit for the future.

'I think an absolutely crucial part of improving the economy of our country is making sure we invest in our northern powerhouse and improving transport links across the north of England will be a huge boost to the economy of the north of England and the whole of the United Kingdom.'

Other infrastructure announcement due in today's Budget include £161million for Highways England to accelerate upgrades to the M62.

He will also create a £1.2billion fund for 30,000 starter homes on brownfield sites. 

Shadow transport secretary Lilian Greenwood has questioned whether any of the trailed projects will ever be delivered.

She said: 'Investment in transport infrastructure for the North is vital but under this Government there has been a huge gap between rhetoric and reality.'

The Budget ends the 'Victorian' practice of sending school pupils home at 3.30pm with £1.5BILLION in extra funding

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan is to oversee plans to convert all schools to an academy 

George Osborne will today hail the end of the 'Victorian' practice of ending the school day at 3.30pm as he unveils plans to turn every school into an academy.

The Chancellor will announce £1.5billion for schools to try and push British education up the global league tables.

Mr Osborne will say it is 'simply unacceptable' for Britain to compare poorly to other countries on education.

Today's announcement could pave the way for the end of the national curriculum as it is currently known as academies have freedom to set their own lessons.

Ahead of his statement, the Chancellor said today: 'The Budget I'll deliver today will put the next generation first. And at its heart will be a bold plan to make sure that every child gets the best start in life.

'It is simply unacceptable that Britain continues to sit too low down the global league tables for education. So I'm going to get on with finishing the job we started five years ago, to drive up standards and set schools free from the shackles of local bureaucracy.

'I also want to support secondary schools that want to offer their pupils longer school days with more extra-curricular activities like sport and art. So we'll fund longer school days for at least 25 per cent of all secondary schools.

'Now is the time us to make the bold decisions and the big investments that will help the next generation, and that is what my Budget today will do.' 

His plans will mean at least one in four secondary schools staying open for another hour every day, either for extra classes or for extracurricular activities.

The Chancellor will say the conversion of all schools to academy status means head teachers will have greater control over what to do with the money.  

In his conference speech last year, David Cameron said he wanted to make local authorities running schools to be a 'thing of the past'.

He announced the Government would create 500 more free schools and convert all council-run schools to academies. 

Claire Paye from Mothers at Home matter - a campaign group whose aims include the protection of family life told MailOnline: 'A lot of schools already offer hours beyond the typical 3.30pm, so more funding would be welcome.

'But these extra hours should not just be extra childcare with children who are just sat in their classroom on their tablets. They need to be taught, do sport or music.

'We would also be disappointed if this was something later extended to primary schools and pre-schools.'

David Cameron visited the Harris Academy in Hackney this week to talk to pupils about his plans for apprenticeships 

There are also concerns about the level of funding made available by the Chancellor. 

The Local Government Association dismissed the plan as unnecessary.

Cllr Roy Perry, Chairman of the Local Government Association's Children and Young People Board, said: 'Forcing schools to become academies strips parents, teachers and faith groups of any local choice.

'We have serious concerns that Regional Schools Commissioners still lack the capacity and local knowledge to have oversight of such a large, diverse and remote range of schools.

'The LGA opposes both forced academisation, and giving significant powers relating to education to unelected civil servants with parents and residents unable to hold them to account at the ballot box.' 

NUT deputy general secretary Kevin Courtney said: 'Parents will be as outraged as teachers that the Government can undo over 50 years of comprehensive public education at a stroke.

'Only last week Her Majesty's chief inspector Sir Michael Wilshaw pointed out to Government the serious consequences for children's education of schools being run by multi-academy trusts.

'But this arrogant Government is choosing to ignore the evidence from the HMCI, the Education Select Committee and the Sutton Trust's own Chain Effects report, which clearly demonstrates that academy status not only does not result in higher attainment but that many chains are badly failing their pupils, particularly their disadvantaged pupils.'

Shadow education secretary Lucy Powell said: 'There is no evidence to suggest that academisation in and of itself leads to school improvement. 

'In some parts of the country where standards remain a concern, all schools are already academies, yet the government has no other school improvement strategy.

'The government only has one education policy, but the truth is delivering educational excellence in all schools goes way beyond a narrow argument on academies versus local authority schools. Failure exists in both school types, just as excellence does.'

OSBORNE SAYS NEW £1.5BN POLICY WILL BE THE END OF VICTORIAN ERA HOURS - BUT ISN'T HE JUST BRINGING IT BACK?

Life in the Victorian classroom: Girls and boys in the 1900 classroom - where many would only be educated until they were 11 and the school day matched the 9am until 5pm working day

Although George Osborne claims his new proposals to fund extended school hours after 3.30pm will end Victorian practices, many schools over a century ago routinely stayed open until 5pm.

In the 1890s children started the day at just before 9am and had a two-hour lunch break so they could go home for lunch. 

In rural areas where children often had to walk several miles to school they would be fed in the classroom, but the food would often be brought in by the teachers.

Parents would then be expected to pick up the children by 5pm - matching up with the typical 9 until 5 working day. Although some schools did close earlier, from 3.30pm, which remains in place today.

In 1870 a law was passed saying that children aged between five and 10 had to attend weekday school, and the the leaving age was raised to 11 in 1893. 

But many children were kept away from school by parents and employers who would rather have them earning money - meaning education was the reserve of the rich.

In primary education girls and boys were taught together but in secondary education they were split up.

The classes revolved around reading, writing and arithmetic with physical education the other key area of teaching.

But boys were also taught woodwork, technical drawing and more advance maths to help them with factory work. Girls were taught cooking, sewing and how to keep home. 

Portions of classes were set aside for teaching Christian values, ethics and children the difference between right and wrong.

The mainly male teachers forced children to copy text repeatedly onto their slates to improve their handwriting, spelling and grammar.

Those schools lucky enough to have paper and ink allowed children to use pens with a metal nib, dipped into an ink well.

Today another existing part of school life that remains from the Victorian era is the long school holidays.

The Victorian summer break and other school holidays were taken during spring planting and early autumn harvests children were needed at home.

They would help with the work in the fields or in the house during the busiest time of the agricultural calendar.

Other breaks in the school year would often be for financial reasons as schools would shut due to lack funding to pay for coal to heat up the classrooms in wintertime. 

Discipline in schools was strict and children would be thrashed for minor offences using a can, belt or the hand. Children were also shamed by wearing a dunce's cap and most children were forced to write lines regularly.