Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact in Northern Ireland of the abolition of VAT exemption for private school fees on the parents of children with special educational needs; and what estimate she has made of additional VAT receipts arising in Northern Ireland.

The Government conducted thorough and detailed analysis of the impacts of this policy, including in Northern Ireland, and published a Tax Impact and Information Note (TIIN) which sets out this analysis. This is a comprehensive assessment of the impacts on individuals and families, businesses and the wider economy, as well as equalities impacts. It was published online and can be found here:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/vat-on-private-school-fees/ac8c20ce-4824-462d-b206-26a567724643

In Northern Ireland, the Education Authority (EA) is responsible for funding placements of pupils with a statement of special educational needs (SEN) within a private school. The EA can recover the VAT that it is charged on these pupils’ fees, which means that those pupils are unaffected by the removal of the VAT exemption.

Due to how VAT is collected it is not possible to estimate the VAT receipts arising in Northern Ireland. However, overall this policy is expected to raise £1.7 billion per year by 2029/30.