THE rise of the Individual Savings Account (ISA) continues and canny savers’ now have a few additional options in their arsenal.

Rumours that George Osborne’s latest Budget would be bland and cautious proved wide of the mark. Among the surprises were a new Lifetime ISA to encourage younger people to save, a bigger than expected increase in the standard ISA allowance and a cut in capital gains tax.

Sounding surprisingly upbeat, in what he confirmed were “challenging economic times”, the Chancellor said that the UK was “set to grow faster than any other major advanced economy in the world.” He announced that the public finances are still on course to deliver a surplus of £10 billion by 2019-20.

However, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), responsible for providing and analysing economic forecasts, has lowered its forecasts for economic growth. At the time of the Autumn Statement it was forecasting GDP growth of 2.4 per cent in 2016 and 2.5 per cent in 2017. The OBR is now predicting the UK economy will grow by 2 per cent this year, then 2.2 per cent in 2017, and 2.1 per cent in each of the three years after that.

All very good Gary, but what about my ISA?

ISAs are simply a wrapper which shields whatever is inside the wrapper from income tax and capital gains tax. Cash can be placed in an ISA as well as investments such as unit trusts and company shares.

The annual amount you can save into an ISA will rise from £15,240 to £20,000 in the tax year starting April 2017, which is a larger than expected move in itself. However, also in April 2017 a new Lifetime ISA will also be introduced for younger savers. Anyone under the age of 40 will be able to open a Lifetime ISA and save up to £4,000 each year until the age of 50. The government will provide a 25 per cent top-up, so for every £4 saved the government will add £1. If you put in £4,000, the government will add £1,000.

Savers will be able to access their money at any time, however, they will lose the bonus and be charged 5 per cent on withdrawals unless they either; use the funds to buy a first home (funds can be used for this purpose at any time from 12 months after opening the account) or; wait until they are 60 to withdraw the money.

Debate running up to the Budget had been dominated by the question of whether the Chancellor would reform the tax treatment of pensions. Speculation had been rife that he would introduce a new flat rate of tax relief on contributions or scrap it all together. In the Budget he announced that he had backed away from scrapping pension tax relief saying that there was “no consensus” for reform. On the quiet I expect the chancellor viewed a policy shift of such magnitude would have been untimely given a certain vote in June.

The savings landscape is constantly changing. It’s not rocket science but it is important to talk through the options available to ensure the path you are following is suitable for your needs.