Tax & Accounting News

Tax rises dropped in Finance Bill compromise

26/04/2010

Plans for a 50p a month broadband tax, a 10% hike in cider duty and the end of tax relief on holiday homes were all dropped as the government agreed a number of compromises in order to get its Finance Bill passed before Parliament closed down for the General Election.

Provisions that would have enabled HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to require a security in respect of PAYE from persistently non-compliant taxpayers were also dropped.

Due to the shortage of time available, the government had to make a number of concessions to opposition parties in order to get its tax plans rubber-stamped.

The Finance Act 2010 became law on 8 April, with the above changes included. This means other major budget announcements, such as the extension of Entrepreneurs’ Relief and the new Stamp Duty rates have now been approved.

However some groups, including the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIoT), have criticised the government for rushing through its tax plans, without a proper debate in parliament.

CIoT policy chief John Whiting said it was “deeply unsatisfactory” that the Finance Bill had had such little debate in parliament, which meant technical defects and loopholes could slip through unchecked.