Chancellor Gordon Brown has targeted first-time buyers in his ninth budget.

Mr Brown has doubled the level at which house buyers pay stamp duty to £120,000.

The chancellor also said inheritance tax thresholds would rise from £260,000 at present to £300,000 by 2007.

Mr Brown celebrated the "longest period of economic growth since records began in 1701" in Britain. He promised to strike the right balance between affordable tax cuts, essential investment and stability, which was paramount.

Inflation is expected to be 1.75 per cent this year and two per cent in 2006. It is now 1.6 per cent.

He predicts the economy would grow by three to 3.5 per cent this year, and 2.5 per cent to three per cent in 2006. Growth last year was 3.1 per cent as forecast. The Chancellor added borrowing is forecast at £34bn for 2004/5, £32bn for 2005/6 and £29bn for 2006/7.

He said he would increase defence spending by £400m over the next year. He has out a further assessment of the tests for euro entry.

Mr Brown has frozen petrol duty.

But he has increased duty on beer by 1p a pint, wine by 4p a bottle, while duty on spirits and cider has been frozen.

Duty on cigarettes has increased by 7p a packet.

He announced new rules to encourage incapacity benefit claimants into work, as well as changes to housing benefits to help create jobs.

There will be £2,000 return-to-work bonuses available to single parents as of April this year.

Mr Brown promised new centres for people who wish to receive vocational training. He also announced £65m to be spent in the coming year on employer training pilots.

There will be new plans targeting young people who are at risk of causing crime.

The Chancellor said there would be no further assessment of whether the UK should adopt the euro in this Budget.

More to follow and full analysis in Thursday's Northern Echo.