Reform to Stamp Duty is ‘long overdue’ and spreading out payments over a longer period would remove the ‘upfront tax penalty on mobility’ and make moving easier says an economic think tank.
The Tony Blair Institute (TBI), founded in 2016, reacted to the latest stamp duty deadline on 31st March with Director of Economic Policy, Tom Smith saying the Labour government needed to make ‘radical’ changes to boost economic growth.
“From 1 April, home buyers in England and Northern Ireland will pay more stamp duty when temporary reliefs come to an end. While these changes are necessary given the state of the public finances, they mean many people will be paying thousands of pounds more to buy a home, and for some people – such as first-time buyers – this change may mean they aren’t able to purchase a home at all.”
said Smith writing on X/Twitter, going on to say the Institute had previously set out the concept of paying stamp duty over the course of property ownership through a government-backed loan. Payment could spread over 20 years with Smith adding if the household moved within the 20 years, they would not need to pay off the remainder of the loan.
“This would remove the upfront tax penalty on mobility, encourage labour-market flexibility and support growth by making it easier for people to move for work.”
Smith goes on to rail against disproportionate council tax bills, which have also increased from 1st April, which result in households in the North East paying £444 more than those in central London. Instead of the current system, the TBI suggests a capped proportional levy calculated against current property value; suggesting 0.5% would ‘help address this imbalance.’ Such a levy could also encourage people in larger, under occupied homes to downsize and improve housing availability and economic mobility. In the latest English Housing Survey almost 10m homes in England had at least two unused bedrooms.
“Stamp duty and council tax reform is long overdue, and its holding back growth, now’s the time to fix it,”
concludes Smith, adding
“these are the sort of radical changes government should be making to kick-start economic growth.”
One Response
What an utterly ridiculous idea from the worst Prime Minister this country ever had before Truss and then Starmer took the title.
Pay SDLT over twenty years? Over that period people are going to move more than once, some six or seven times. So pay off the remainder of the loan. What happens next? Do they just not pay any more stamp duty? Or do we start again. And ad infinitum every time they move?
Has not been thought out very well has it? Just another publicity piece from a media hungry person.