Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information his Department holds on the value of the (a) former HMRC property Custom House in the City of London and (b) land attached to that property.
Answered by Jesse Norman
HMRC still retain ownership of the freehold interest in Custom House, London. The advice they have received from external surveyors is that the value of their freehold interest is probably negligible as it is subject to an unexpired long lease on the property which is owned by Mapeley, the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contractor. The value of the grant of the long leasehold interest was reflected in the PFI contractor’s bid price at the start of the contract.
HMRC understand that Mapeley have received an offer for their unexpired long leasehold interest in the property, subject to planning permission being granted, for the development of a hotel, but is not party to the details of that proposal. HMRC have no interest in, or information about, any additional land that may be proposed as part of a wider redevelopment of the area.