The Conservative party has said it would scrap the proposed “mansion tax” on properties over £2 million and streamline red tape to reduce the cost of building new homes if elected to government.
Speaking at the party’s annual conference in Birmingham shadow chancellor Andrew Griffith said red tape was adding significant costs to building new homes, citing the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), the Future Homes Standard, and section 106 agreements as examples of regulations adding costs to house building. The party said it estimated it could reduce the cost of building new homes by £50,000 per property. A recent report by the Home Builders Federation estimated increases in taxes and the cost of policies introduced by successive governments have added an extra £76,000 to the cost of delivering every new home.
On the mansion tax Griffiths said Labour’s Andy Burnham was “recruiting an army of snoopers….to spy on citizens to see if you’ve a particularly well-kept garden.” He added “They (Labour) pretend it’s a mansion tax but it will hit people here in Birmingham, in Manchester and those living in ordinary homes making long commutes to our capital city. For many, it will be simply unaffordable, they may have bought their home decades ago, be retired, be on a fixed income, £75,000 over ten years. Where is a widow supposed to get that sort of money? They don’t care.”
Saying the party would cut one tax each year, the shadow chancellor added “lower, simpler and fairer taxes” would be his “north star” if elected.
Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch is expected to announce the party’s position on Inheritance Tax in her speech on Wednesday after saying scrapping the tax would be “morally right”, but any commitments would have to be “fiscally responsible.”
