Campaign groups have given their responses to the Budget.

The CBI welcomed what the business organisation group described as a "balanced Budget" which looks beyond short-term political concerns to the genuine long-term needs of UK plc.

Sir Digby Jones, CBI director general, said: "This is a measured Budget which has been crafted to ensure that economic stability is maintained. The chancellor has avoided the temptation of pre-election risk taking, targeting help only where it is needed most.

"The impact of globalization is a daily reality for those in business and it is a relief that its importance is finally being recognised by everyone. The threat posed by emerging markets is real and will transform radically the way business is done over the next few years. The chancellor has shown that he recognises we must be ready to meet the challenges head-on and government help is vital.

"I applaud the deregulation measures outlined. This must be at the heart of the UK's battle to be competitive. Both the Hampton Report and the Better Regulation Task Force report contain practical ways forward that look workable, but the delivery of change will be the acid test. Business will be heartened that for the first time increases in public spending will be tied to the achievement of specific reforms in specific departments.

"Employees of the government and local authorities must sign up to these reforms."

Miles Templeman, director general of the Institute of Directors (IoD), gave the Budget his broad support.

He said: "The 'better regulation' proposals are a serious attempt by the government to address the concerns of business facing the rising tide of regulation.

"The IoD supports the government's endorsement of the Hampton Review and the Better Regulation Task Force report. If the government manages to implement these proposals, business will be very happy.

"The key is implementation and seeing fine words translated into action. The government should publish an annual review of exactly which regulations have been removed and by how much the cost of red tape has been reduced.

"Business involvement in the de-regulation process is fundamental to its success.  The IoD will establish its own regulatory task force to help identify specific regulations which require revision or removal."

Dave Prentis, general secretary of the public sector union Unison, gave his strong backing to the Budget.

"Gordon Brown's budget shows no sign of election fever, he has kept his cool and targeted benefits at those people who really need it - pensioners, working families and children.

"Tax bribes have been a shameless feature of nearly every Tory pre-election budget, so it's good to see no tacky tax cuts for votes.  Instead he has targeted tax credits for lower middle income families.

"Gordon Brown has made a conscious decision to continue investment in our public services to build a better future rather than the Tory's stop/go policies of the past. The budget reflects the peoples' priorities of better public services, better schools and better hospitals, a vision that people can vote for.

"The £200 cut council tax rebate for pensioners is a very welcome measure, as is his decision to give free bus travel to pensioners across the country. 

"The chancellor has targeted new benefits which will help to give every child a better start in life and help parents balance the demands of work and home.  Increasing the cash the Government is putting into child trust funds will open up more choice and opportunities for 18 year olds in the future.

"Preparing the workforce for the future is vital and the additional money going into workplace training pilots, apprenticeships and the union learning academy, will help to build a high skill workforce.

"We welcome continued investment in public services but swingeing job cuts threaten to undermine delivery of front line public services.  These are real people doing real jobs that are vital. 

"We are not against the concept of joined up inspection but the chancellor's proposals for merging inspection bodies look rushed and ill-thought through.  We  will be seeking urgent discussions at a senior level to ensure that this is not simply a cost cutting exercise.

"Finally raising stamp duty to £120,000 will help get some first time buyers onto the housing ladder.  However, if the government is serious about tackling the housing crisis, they should go further and invest more in affordable rented accommodation and council housing"

The GMB has welcomed measures in the Budget. Acting general secretary Debbie Coulter said: "This is a budget GMB members will welcome, renewing Labour's support for pensioners and for working families with young children. It also offers hope for young people as they enter the world of work, and a foot on the ladder for future homeowners.

"GMB members will heartily welcome the £200 council tax rebate and the universal free bus travel for pensioners. We can also welcome the planned increase in pension credit, but we must acknowledge that pensioners would rather see these increases coming through their universal basic state pension instead of a complicated mean-tested system with disappointingly low take up.

"The extra £400m earmarked for defence spending should give a boost to the defence industry, where many skilled GMB members risk redundancy whenever there are shortages of work.

"It's right to see research and science-based industries as a key part of Britain's working future, but it must be said this has been a sad day for manufacturing. Job losses today tipped the one million mark since 1997, so it would have been heartening for many GMB members to see a more concrete strategy from the chancellor to protect manufacturing.

"We strongly endorse the billions going into public services, from the rebuilding of 9000 primary schools to the massive expansion of Labour's SureStart schemes. We know that Labour is doing more than any other party could or would to help Britain's children.

"Gordon Brown has offered a sensible package of measures that will appeal to Labour voters. Undeniably, the economy remains in robust health. Living standards have risen while inflation and interest rates have been kept low.

"The alternative - a return to the Tory days of "us and them", of politicians playing roulette with jobs and mortgages - is no alternative at all."

Glenn Collins, head of advisory services at the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), said that the chancellor's moves on stamp duty and inheritance tax - while welcome - represent missed opportunities.

He said: "On stamp duty, rather than purely raising the threshold from £60,000 to £120,000, the system really needs a root and branch revamp to become similar to the Income Tax system, where only the amount over each threshold band is subject to tax at that rate, not the full property price. 

"For example, under the new band threshold, a home costing £121,000 will be subject to 1 per cent tax on the full property price, resulting in a Stamp Duty liability of £1,210. 

"A fairer system would be that only the £1,000 over the £120,000 threshold would be subject to the duty, resulting in only a £10 charge.

"Similarly, the chancellor's decision simply to raise the inheritance tax threshold from its current level of £263,000 to £275,000 fails to go far enough.  The threshold should now stand at £390,000 if it had been increased in line with house price inflation and we are disappointed that the government has not chosen that figure.

"In its tax manifesto published this week, ACCA urged the government to extend to inheritance tax the exemption that applies currently to the individual's main residence under capital gains tax. 

"Making the main residence exempt from inheritance tax would remove one of the greatest inequities of the inheritance tax system and reduce the burden on ordinary taxpayers and their families."

Kevin Hawkins, director general of the British Retail Consortium, endorsed the chancellor’s comments on inflation and interest rates. He said: "The BRC welcomes the chancellor's recognition that both low inflation and low interest rates are the key to stability in the UK economy and retailers are relieved that Gordon Brown has done nothing to further weaken consumer confidence. His actions may even have a positive impact on confidence.

"The BRC welcomes the government’s commitment to the recommendations set out by the Better Regulation Task Force and the Hampton review. The 'less is more' principle is a sensible one when it comes to unnecessary regulation.

"The BRC has campaigned hard to reduce the burden of regulation and for more consistent enforcement targeted towards rogue traders. Whilst we support the proposals, everything will depend on whether they are fully and wholeheartedly implemented. They must not be left on a shelf to gather dust.

"The great flexibility offered and change-accommodating attitude makes the retail sector very attractive, especially to women. Flexibility is important in any workplace but it is equally important that this comes at a realistic and workable price, especially to those smaller retailers that find it more difficult to absorb additional costs.

"The differences between small and large retailers in terms of company policies can be significant and a raft of new employment legislations will always prove more of a challenge for smaller retailers.

"The BRC are pleased the Low Pay Commission (LPC) has taken our evidence into account and only recommended an increase of four per cent to the national minimum wage. Whilst this is still an above inflation increase, retailers will be relieved as the two consecutive increases of seven to eight per cent (October 2003/4) are proving very difficult for both larger and smaller retailers to absorb in today’ s trading conditions.

"Retail sales growth is slow and the current economic climate is generally uncertain. Ill thought out decisions on the minimum wage hit every business hard and we are therefore concerned that the LPC has recommended an increase of 6 per cent to £5.35 for October 2006.

"The LPC' s recommendations for this October reflect the BRC' s concern about the continued impact of the national minimum wage on pay differentials and the chairman of the commission has admitted that they do not yet have enough data from the Office for National Statistics which would enable them to make a final assessment. We therefore urge the commission to review the recommendation for October 2006 as and when further data is available and in the light of the state of the economy later this year."

Carol Undy, national chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, gave a cautious welcome to the pledge to curb inspections.

She said: "The Hampton report is encouraging.  There are currently over 300 different kinds of inspections carrying a right of entry into business premises and the whole army of inspectors desperately needs to be rationalised.

"Every single inspection interrupts day-to-day business.  Hardworking business owners must be able to concentrate on what they are good at - job creation and wealth generation.  We urged Philip Hampton to work towards a single general-purpose inspector. 

"His recommendation to merge 35 inspectorates into nine is an important start. Businesses have been promised bonfires of red tape in the past and they have never been ignited. The Better Regulation Taskforce report is certainly radical.  A more systematic assessment of the administrative cost of regulation should replace the assumptions that are made at present. 

"A 'one-in-one-out approach' may bring about a much needed cultural change within the civil service and a commitment to tackle 'gold plating' is welcome. But whether or not the report will result in 'fundamental change' and 'a red tape revolution' awaits to be seen.

"Businesses are cynical because of past broken promises - 30 reports, seven white papers and two acts of parliament during the last 20 years alone. At the 2004 Budget, the chancellor said that he accepted the case for the Inland Revenue paying the working tax credit directly to claimants. 

"It was about time he announced the timetable for this change, and employers and employees alike will welcome the introduction of direct payment from November 2005.

"Hardworking business owners will welcome the introduction of a range of flexible payment options for tax bills and we call for them to be implemented immediately. The government’s failure to outlaw upwards only rent review clauses is a cop out."

Adam Sampson, director of Shelter, said the chancellor should invested more in building more social homes, rather than easing stamp duty levels.

He said: "By easing stamp duty the chancellor has dipped into the public purse to promote home ownership.  While this might provide temporary relief for first time buyers, in the absence of any sustained investment in supply the risk is that this will be swallowed up by house price inflation.

"It would have been more prudent if the chancellor had used finances to invest in building more social homes as part of a rounded housing package, making life easier both for first time buyers as well as helping those who are unable to afford their own home."

Mervyn Kohler, head of public affairs at Help the Aged, said despite the free bus travel for older people, the Budget was an opportunity missed.

He added: "Help the Aged has long campaigned for free local bus travel for older people throughout the country, so today's announcement comes as a welcome surprise, and addresses a situation where there was a postcode lottery before.

"Gordon Brown can fairly claim that during his stewardship, the Treasury has found £10bn per year of extra money for pensioners from the position the Labour government inherited in 1997. Seldom can so much largesse have reaped so few rewards.

"Over nine Budgets, and against a backdrop of data emphasising the success of the economy, the chancellor’s policies have been skewed towards means-tested benefits, which are inefficient at reaching those most in need and unpopular because people need to plead poverty in order to claim them.

"He has produced a number of one-off payments which are valuable, pain-relieving measures, like winter fuel payments and this year’s council tax refund, but which do little to build self-esteem and self-confidence in our older population.

"A brave Budget might have invested in our ailing social care services, or could have flagged the need for an urgent reform of our pensions system, which is widely called for by employers, trade unions, voluntary organisations and the financial services industry.

"Instead we have the usual cash bribe, and older people will recognise this for what it is: a grand gesture to an increasingly restive older electorate. Bluntly, this is not an adequate response to the legitimate needs of our older population."

Richard Wastcoat, UK managing director of Fidelity Investments, welcomed the extension of ISA limits.

"The decision to keep current ISA limits until 2010 is welcome and an important reminder that government has a role to play in encouraging people to save for their future," he said.

"We would also like to see the chancellor restore the dividend tax credit for ISAs. We are in no doubt that the removal of the dividend tax credit has deterred some investors from taking out ISAs.

"The chancellor should go a step further by raising the maximum contribution limits for ISAs, which we believe, will really boost savings. The ISA contribution levels have always been below those for PEPs, nor have the limits kept pace with inflation like many of the other allowances granted to the taxpayer."

Stephen Joseph, director of Transport 2000, expressed his disappointment.

He said: "This Budget is slightly greener than expected but if you bought a tin of paint this colour you’d be disappointed when you opened it and realised it had been watered down far too much. It doesn’t go nearly far enough in setting a framework to tackle transport’s growing contribution to climate change.

"It’s no surprise with an election on the doorstep that the government is not prepared to raise fuel duty by more than inflation but sooner or later, whoever is in government, the tax system will have to be used much more boldly to help change the way we travel.

"Transport climate emissions are soaring and if Tony Blair and Gordon Brown are serious about tackling climate change, they will have to make the connection between climate and transport, particularly road traffic and aviation. That means substantially raising the cost of motoring and flying."

Claire Kober, policy manager at Leonard Cheshire, said: "Gordon Brown’s plan to integrate the work of the Commission for Social Care Inspection with that of the Healthcare Commission comes only a year after the Commission for Social Care Inspection came into operation (April 2004).

"Over the last year the commission has worked to inspect and regulate essential social care services and ensure that they meet the needs of the people who access them.

"An enforced merger with the Healthcare Commission not only threatens to 'medicalise' social care, but also silences the voices of services users. The chancellor’s plan appears to be a challenge to the prime minister’s recently announced landmark vision for improving disabled people’s life chances.

"Political vandalism such as this threatens to push back social care services 10 years, and will slow down the great progress that has been made in reforming regulation and inspection practices."

Simon Chapman, chief economist at the Freight Transport Association, said: "With fuel constituting up to 30 per cent of the operating costs of UK goods vehicles, higher prices have, once again, impacted on already tight margins. 

"The chancellor has benefited from higher income from increased oil revenues and VAT.  Last year's freeze in fuel duty was welcome and appropriate as is this continuation."

Professor Sir Alan Craft, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and chairman of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, said: "The commitment that the chancellor made in today's Budget to additional spending on the NHS is very welcome.

"The NHS supertanker is starting to turn thanks to the extra money that has already been flowing into the National Health Service in recent years, but - whichever party wins the next election - we need to see that increased investment sustained over the long term if we are to deliver the first-class NHS to which all three main parties are committed."

Kate Green, chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group, said: "The commitment to continue to increase the child element in child tax credit in line with earnings is vital if the government is to stay on track to meet its child poverty target.

"CPAG is pleased that its pleas to the chancellor to make this commitment have been listened to.

"We welcome the increase in educational maintenance allowance which builds on a popular and successful policy Investing in EMA and in support through tax credits and child benefit as children grow up helps families to meet the immediate costs of raising children, and whilst we note that the government is to consult on further investment in the Child Trust Fund for older children, this will not benefit children in poverty now, and the priority for spending must be to maintain the value of child benefit and tax credits."

Forum of Private Business (FPB) chief executive Nick Goulding criticised the chancellor's complication and burden of the tax regime saying there had been a number of missed opportunities.