Cut stamp duty

 Government urged to slash stamp duty

The TaxPayers" Alliance is calling on the government to slash stamp duty and other taxes on home ownership to encourage a post-Brexit boom. A report by the body calculated that households and businesses paid nearly £67bn in property taxes in 2014-15 - a 2.8% increase on the previous 12 months and a drag on economic growth in every region. Almost all the increase came from stamp duty, which rose by £1.5bn. The fastest increase in property tax was in Scotland, from £5.3bn to £5.5bn. The report also said the UK had the heaviest property taxes in the OECD group in 2014, at 4.1% of GDP. Meanwhile, TaxPayers’ Alliance CEO Jonathan Isaby writes to the Times to express support for a cut in VAT and an increase in capital allowances. But he adds that more tax on wealth and the axing of tax relief on buy-to-let mortgages are less welcome proposals.

Source:  Daily Express (08/08/2016)