Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to (a) reinstate the Community Automated External Defibrillator Fund and (b) introduce VAT relief for community groups purchasing defibrillators.

The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) is responsible for funding decisions relating to local and community healthcare.

Over 110,000 defibrillators are registered in the United Kingdom on The Circuit, the independent AED database.

A key consideration for any potential new VAT relief is whether savings would be passed on to the consumer, in this case by makers and suppliers of AEDs. Evidence suggest that businesses only partially pass on any savings from lower VAT rates.