All change as £1 coin gets 'threepenny' update to become 'most secure in circulation'

THE £1 coin is to be replaced by a 12-sided successor that recalls the old “threepenny bit”, George Osborne will announce today.

The new style coin will be 039 the most secure in circulation in the world 039 The new-style coin will be 'the most secure in circulation in the world' [PA]

The Chancellor has chosen Budget Day to reveal Britain’s currency will be updated with a coin designed to be “the most secure in circulation in the world”.

And Mr Osborne, also Master of the Mint, has selected the retro look in a deliberate attempt to distinguish British money from the euro.

Like the euro, the new coin will feature two differently-coloured metals for the centre and outer sections to make it harder to counterfeit.

A Treasury insider said: “There was a concern that a round coin could end up looking like the euro, so the 12-sided shape was chosen to make sure the final result is distinctively British.”

The new coin, to come into circulation in 2017, will be a similar size to the current pound coin. The threepenny piece, or “bit”, minted in yellow nickel brass, was in circulation from 1937 until decimalisation in 1971.

The £1 coin has been in circulation for more than 30 years, but there are concerns that it is too easy to fake. Royal Mint figures released last night show that about three per cent of all pound coins, about 45 million in circulation, are forgeries.

new pound coin, coin, pound coin, threepenny bit, george osborne, euro, budget, treasury, currencyGeorge Osborne has chosen Budget Day to announce the new currency [GETTY]

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Business groups welcomed the new coin last night, although Helen Dickinson, director-general of the British Retail Council, said: “It is important for industry that any potential change is effectively planned and managed in order to minimise hardware costs for business.” Meanwhile, Nick Clegg risked inflaming a pre-Budget row by insisting last night that concerns that middle-income earners are being squeezed by the income tax system were based on a “misconception”.

The Lib Dem Deputy PM rejected calls from Tories for cuts in the 40 per cent higher income tax rate. He claimed middle-income earners were “not paying a penny more” because of a series of increases in the basic 20 per rate.

“There’s a huge misconception about this,” said Mr Clegg. “Yes, it is true that more people are paying the 40p rate of income tax. But no, they are not paying more income tax.

“Because we’ve raised the point at which you start paying income tax, finally reaching my aim of removing income tax paid on the first £10,000 you earn as of next month – you are also better off as a 40 per cent income tax payer.

“Far from paying any extra income tax as a 40 per cent income tax payer, you are, on average, about £300 better off.”

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