Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the stamp duty holiday for people who have requested solicitors to buy or sell a house before the stamp duty holiday deadline.

The temporary SDLT relief was designed to stimulate immediate momentum in a property market where property transactions fell by as much as 50 per cent during the COVID-19 lockdown in March. This has also supported the jobs of people whose employment relies on custom from the property industry, such as retailers and tradespeople.

The Government will continue to monitor the market, but as the relief was designed to provide an immediate stimulus to the property market, it does not plan to extend this relief.