Asked by: Steve Baker (Conservative - Wycombe)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of moving the trigger point for the Stamp Duty holiday from the date of completion to the date of sale.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Stamp Duty Land Tax temporary rates apply to transactions completed or substantially performed between 8 July 2020 and 31 March 2021. A transaction is substantially performed where the buyer has paid 90% of the purchase price, or where they have possession of the whole or substantially the whole of the property.
Completion and substantial performance are recognised legal concepts and using them as trigger points for Stamp Duty Land Tax provides certainty to consumers and to HMRC. There is no standard definition of a point of sale in a housing transaction and so moving the trigger point for a transaction to the date of sale would lead to uncertainty and confusion among home buyers. This lack of certainty would also mean that such a trigger point would be open to abuse.
As with all tax policy, the Government continues to monitor the impact of the SDLT temporary rates.
Asked by: Steve Baker (Conservative - Wycombe)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will extend the stamp duty holiday for six to 12 months.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The temporary increase in the Stamp Duty Land Tax nil rate band was designed to create immediate momentum within the property market, where property transactions fell by as much as 50 per cent during the COVID-19 lockdown. The downturn in the market meant that the future was uncertain for many people whose jobs relied on custom from the property industry. There are already early signs that demand and transactions have increased, and are continuing to rise, since the increase to the SDLT nil rate band was announced in July.
As the relief was designed to provide an immediate stimulus to the property market, the Government does not plan to extend this relief and will continue to monitor the property market.
Asked by: Steve Baker (Conservative - Wycombe)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will ensure the decision on the treatment of the full life cycle of renewable, plant based plastics under the proposed plastic packaging tax will support the Government’s wider carbon reduction and climate change goals; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The departments for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs are in the process of analysing responses to their call for evidence on setting standards for biodegradable, compostable and bio-based plastics as part of the Bioeconomy Strategy. This will also reinforce the Government’s understanding of their environmental impact of their wider adoption.
As set out in the current consultation on the Plastic Packaging Tax, the Government decided not to pre-judge the outcome of this work by having any special treatment for these types of plastics, which could encourage wider adoption of them. This is also in line with the majority view to the first consultation on the tax conducted in 2019.
The Government will keep their treatment within the tax under review throughout the process of introduction in April 2022 and following this to ensure the tax continues to deliver on the Government’s environmental objectives.
Asked by: Steve Baker (Conservative - Wycombe)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress he has made in reviewing the benefits of the use of renewable plant-based plastics; and whether he plans to complete that review in time to inform the treatment of those plastics under the proposed plastic packaging tax.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The departments for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs are in the process of analysing responses to their call for evidence on setting standards for biodegradable, compostable and bio-based plastics as part of the Bioeconomy Strategy. This will also reinforce the Government’s understanding of their environmental impact of their wider adoption.
As set out in the current consultation on the Plastic Packaging Tax, the Government decided not to pre-judge the outcome of this work by having any special treatment for these types of plastics, which could encourage wider adoption of them. This is also in line with the majority view to the first consultation on the tax conducted in 2019.
The Government will keep their treatment within the tax under review throughout the process of introduction in April 2022 and following this to ensure the tax continues to deliver on the Government’s environmental objectives.
Asked by: Steve Baker (Conservative - Wycombe)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of treating mechanical ventilation with heat recovery as an energy saving measure in order for such ventilation to qualify for a reduced rate of VAT.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Until the transition period negotiated as part of the Withdrawal Agreement is complete, the current UK VAT rules will continue to apply.
However, HM Treasury and HM Revenue and Customs are working closely together to consider any changes that may be needed to ensure that the VAT system supports the Government’s objectives for both the Net Zero Review and its wider fiscal and economic strategy.