Kevin Foster, Conservative Parliamentary Spokesman for Torbay, has welcomed radical changes to savings which came into force yesterday (1st July 2014).

Millions of savers across the country, including thousands in the bay, are now able to save three times as much money in their ISAs. As part of the New ISA, the cash limit has gone up from £5,760 in 2013-14 to £15,000 in 2014-15. 

Not only can more money be saved in ISAs, but the Government has made other changes to ensure it is as easy as possible to do so:

•        The overall New ISA limit is £15,000 – and this full amount can be held in either a cash ISA, a stocks and shares ISA, or any combination of the two.

•        The New ISA will give savers complete flexibility over how to save and invest – allowing the transfer of savings previously held in a stocks and shares ISA to a cash ISA without losing the tax-advantage.

•        Over 23 million adults have ISAs, and over 5 million people reach their cash limit every year.  Across the South West Region 2,171,000 people already have an ISA with 648,000 having already reached the previous limit, this means they will benefit immediately from the change.

At the same time, the annual subscription limits for Child Trust Funds (CTFs) and Junior ISAs will be increased to £4,000 to let families save more for their children in a tax-advantaged way.

Commenting Kevin said: “Many bay residents rely on income from their savings in order to enjoy a comfortable retirement. With interest rates remaining low the ability to receive more income from them tax free will make a real difference.”

“The ability to save more each year in a tax free account will not only help those approaching or already in retirement, but anyone saving for a new home, car or just looking to build a nest egg for the future. More people will be able to have their own long term plan for the future thanks to this change.”