Deloitte has announced its predictions for chancellor Alistair Darling's 2009 Pre-Budget Report (PBR), which he will deliver on December 9th.
The Big 4 firm expects the two themes that will govern the PBR will be the General Election in 2010 and the recession, along with its impact on the economy.
When discussing the tax measures that could be expected, Bill Dodwell, head of tax policy at Deloitte, concluded that an increase in the main rate of VAT would be the least damaging tax rise.
"The political, and economic, question is whether the chancellor will announce changes now, or wait until a pre- or post-election Budget," Mr Dodwell said.
Due to current state of the economy, Deloitte believes the changes should not be made immediately and suggests that if the chancellor has the same view he could postpone decisions on tax rises that are significant.
Other measures Deloitte expects to hear about in the PBR include the powers of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and an update on the reform of controlled foreign companies' legislation.
The idea of a PBR was introduced in 1997 by chancellor Gordon Brown to provide an update on the country's economy and public finance and explain the government's direction leading up to the spring Budget.
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