Labour frontbenchers mocked Nick Clegg, pictured, and his Lib Dem colleagues as George Osborne dashed their hopes of introducing a 'mansion tax' in his Autumn Statement.

George Osborne hoisted an 'Open for Business' sign over Britain with a multi-billion pound package to help firms fight back against the slump at home and the troubles in the eurozone.

Annual rises for teachers will be scrapped and heads given almost complete freedom to dictate salary increases in the shake-up outlined in the Autumn Statement.

We round up the main announcements in the Chancellor's speech and explore the devil in the detail to see how tax and spending changes affect you.

Adele Collinson, pictured, owns an arts and crafts busines and worries the new cap on tax-free pension contributions will hit her retirement plans.

George Osborne targeted workers at the top, middle and bottom of the financial heap in his Autumn statement yesterday with a raft of money-saving measures.

Pensions minister Steve Webb (pictured) warned the state of the public finances meant 'difficult decisions' had to be taken, and challenged Labour to back them.

The Shadow Chancellor - who dressed as Santa for the Westminster Kids Club Christmas party - was jeered in the Commons after declaring that the deficit was coming down before changing his mind.

Bassetlaw MP John Mann said the Shadow Chancellor’s response to the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement had damaged Mr Balls’s leadership prospects – and made Mr Miliband’s position secure.

Hard-pressed motorists have been told that a planned 2p a litre fuel duty rise will not happen next September in the Chancellor's Autumn Statement today.

George Osborne did not address problems such as low levels of investment, lack of access to finance, and high energy costs.

George Osborne described the crackdown as the 'largest package of measures to tackle tax avoidance, tax evasion, fraud and error so far this parliament'.

Many employers are hiring staff on contracts where they are classed as self employed, even if they are full-time employees.

With this year's statement imminent, pension experts are pleading for a grace period for an industry that has undergone wide-ranging regulatory changes in recent years.

Income tax free personal allowance to rise to £10,600 rather than the planned £10,500 next year. Higher rate income tax threshold to rise to £42,385 next year.

The big omissions from a Budget or an Autumn Statement are always revealing. It used to be help for savers. This week the missing element was the squeezed middle. Not households, but firms.

Geoff Parkes, teaching fellow at Aston Business School in Birmingham, said: ‘Thus far, the scheme has accounted for less than two per cent of all lending to small firms.’

IPSE, a body that represents the self-employed, believes the Chancellor could limit contracts to just a month for freelancers, after which they would be forced on to the client’s payroll.

The Chancellor has pledged to eliminate the record deficit racked up by Labour during the financial crisis and return the country to the black by the end of the decade.

Chancellor George Osborne has confirmed the basic state pension will rise by £3.35 to £119.30 a week from April, while the starting rate for the new single-tier version will be £155.65.

Public funding - known as Short Money - given to opposition parties to prepare to become an alternative government is to be slashed by 19 per cent, in line with Whitehall departments.

George Osborne hit the buy-to-let dream with a big stamp duty hike yesterday, but landlords still have a tax trick they can pull to claim it back.

As John McDonnell stood up for his big moment to respond to the Chancellor's spending plans, Labour's MPs were much more interested in their mobile phones than his rambling speech.

The Chancellor has revealed an amended 'taper rate' for the welfare payments, which will allow low-paid workers to keep an additional 2p of every extra pound they earn.

Tom Birch, 43, from Bath, earns £100,000 a year in his financial services job and receives extra life insurance, dental cover, and critical illness cover through a salary sacrifice scheme.

Few can defend the way that letting agents hit tenants with rip-off administrative fees. These firms cash in every time someone rents a new home, writes DAN HYDE.

Social care for older people is the responsibility of local councils across Britain, and its leaders say that savage cuts have already had to be made due to lower funding from Whitehall.

Hammond has backed recent HMRC proposals for a crackdown on using the loophole for smartphone and gym contracts, buying cars and TVs, or private medical insurance.

John McDonnell insisted today that Labour MPs were listening to his response to the Autumn Statement yesterday despite most of them being seen busy on their mobile phones.

The Chancellor said the government was treating the estimates from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) as a 'signal' of what might happen.

Five million higher earners will be hit by a £200 'stealth tax on Middle England' because of changes to National Insurance Contributions buried in Treasury documents.

Former health secretary Stephen Dorrell, who is now chairman of the NHS Confederation, said Philip Hammond (shown) had made a ‘mistake’ by failing to find extra funds in last week’s autumn statement.

Crystal Palace tweeted a cringeworthy video to announce the £8million signing of James McCarthy from Everton. The clip shows James McArthur outside an internet cafe.

The 19-year-old had attracted the attention of eight other Premier League sides in the summer transfer window, but remained at Stamford Bridge to battle for first-team football.

SPORTS AGENDA BY MIKE KEEGAN: England's footballers may well have been delighted last week when the FA announced a multi-year sponsorship deal with food delivery app Deliveroo.

RICHARD TANNER AT THE DW STADIUM: Jamal Lowe's first goal for Wigan ended Nottingham Forest's 10-game unbeaten run and left boss Sabri Lamouchi admitting he got his team wrong.

Rio Ferdinand, who was on the pitch in October 2011 when Luis Suarez abused Patrice Evra, hit out at the length of time it has taken for any apology to come from those associated with Liverpool.

ROB STEWART AT ASHTON GATE: Pedro Pereira's first Bristol City goal earned the Robins a late draw with Wigan in their Championship clash at Ashton Gate.

IAN WHITTELL AT EWOOD PARK: Wigan Athletic climbed off the foot of the Championship table on Monday night after playing out a goalless draw with Lancashire rivals Blackburn Rovers.

Brendan Rodgers says no player who he wants to keep will leave Leicester in the January transfer window. Rodgers is determined to keep intact a squad who have taken Leicester to second place.

The Christmas decorations are being taken down and New Year's Resolutions are already being broken. The third-round of the FA Cup is now upon us after a festive flurry of football.

The Championship trio are all keen to prise the versatile Windass, 26, who can play in midfield or up front, away from Wigan before the transfer window closes next Friday.

The 32-year-old has been training with Salford this season after being released by Wigan Athletic last year. The midfielder was once viewed as a long-term replacement for Paul Scholes at United.

Robinson was left distraught when his £10m deadline-day move to AC Milan collapsed at the last minute in January. However, he could be set for a big Premier League move this summer.

Wigan defender Antonee Robinson has revealed he needs a medical procedure to correct an irregular heart rhythm before he can play again.

In a rush to obtain holiday money before taking a flight to Corsica, travel journalist Sarah Hartley took out €200 from a Moneycorp machine. A debit card receipt showed she'd been charged £245.

You don't need to break the bank to enjoy the finer things in life - you just need to know where to look. Here, we reveal how to live a life of luxury on a budget.

This week, the pound has taken a tumble, leaving it at a 28 month low against the dollar while it has also dipped significantly against the euro.

The Civil Aviation Authority is readying contingencies, which could include having to repatriate thousands of customers if the travel agent goes bust during their holidays.

Julie Tuck's family arrived at Doncaster Airport on Wednesday 17 July at 1pm, ready to depart to Kos at 4pm. However, at 4pm they were all advised that their flight had been cancelled.