Finance (No. 2) Bill — House of Commons, 2018-02-21
Topic: Housing
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): With this it will be convenient to discuss the following: New clause 8—Annual report on relief for first-time buyers— "(1) The Chancellor of the Exchequer must prepare and lay before the House of Commons a report for each relevant period on the operation of the relief for first-time buyers introduced in Schedule 6ZA to FA 2003 not less than three months after the end of the relevant period (2) The report shall include, in particular, information in respect of the relevant period on— (a) the number of first-time buyers benefiting from the relief, (b) the number of purchases benefiting from the relief, (c) the average age of first-time buyers benefiting from the relief, (d) the effects on the operation of the private rented sector, (e) the effects on council housing and other social housing, (f) the effects on the supply of affordable housing, and (g) the effects on the operation of collective investment schemes under Part 17 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (3) For the purposes of this section, ‘relevant period’ means— (a) the period from 22 November 2017 to 5 April 2018, (b) each period of 12 months beginning on 6 April during which the relief is in effect, and (c) the period beginning on 6 April and ending with the day on which the relief ceases to have effect." This new clause requires an annual report on the operation of the relief for first-time buyers, including information on the beneficiaries and effects on different aspects of housing supply. New clause 2—Review of income tax revenue— "(1) The Office for Budget Responsibility must review the revenue raised by the rates of income tax within six months of the passing of this Act (2) A review under this section must consider revenue raised by the rates of income tax specified in sections 3 and 4 (3) A review under this section must also consider the effect on revenue of raising each of the rates of income tax specified in sections 3 and 4 by one percentage point (4) The Chancellor of the Exchequer must lay before the House of Commons the report of the review under this section as soon as practicable after its completion." This new clause provides for a review of the revenue raised at the rates of income tax specified by Clauses 3 and 4 of the Bill and the effect on revenue of raising each of those rates by one percentage point. New clause 10—Review of retrospective VAT refunds for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and the Scottish Police Authority— "(1) Within one month of this Act receiving Royal Assent, the Chancellor of the Exchequer shall commission a review of the potential consequences of allowing the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and the Scottish Police Authority to claim VAT refunds under section 33 of VATA 1994 retrospective to the date of their establishment (2) The review shall consider— (a) the administrative consequences of allowing retrospective claims, and (b) the impact on revenue of allowing retrospective claims (3) The Chancellor of the Exchequer shall lay the report of this review before the House of Commons within six months of this Act receiving Royal Assent." This new clause would require the Chancellor of the Exchequer to commission a review into what the potential consequences of allowing the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and the Scottish Police Authority to make retrospective claims for VAT refunds would be. New clause 11—Analysis of effect of income tax rates on incentives into employment— "(1) The Office for Budget Responsibility must review the impact of the rates of income tax specified in sections 3 and 4 in accordance with this section within six months of the passing of this Act (2) A review under this section must consider the impact of the rates of income tax specified in sections 3 and 4 on the incentives for individuals to seek employment, including— (a) whether those rates create, or detract from, an incentive for those not employed to enter into employment, (b) whether those rates create, or detract from, an incentive for those currently in employment entering into new employment at a different level of income, and (c) to what degree those rates create, or detract from, any such incentive (3) A review under this section must also consider those rates in the context of— (a) National Insurance contributions, (b) tax credits, and (c) social security benefits (4) A review under this section must give separate analyses in relation to the impact of the rates of income tax specified in sections 3 and 4 in different parts of the United Kingdom (5) In this section— ‘parts of the United Kingdom’ means— (a) England, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales, and (d) Northern Ireland (6) The Chancellor of the Exchequer must lay before the House of Commons the report of the review under this section as soon as practicable after its completion." Government amendments 6 to 8 Amendment 10, in clause 44, page 38, line 30, at end insert— "(4A) In paragraph 1GE (higher rates of duty) after paragraph (3)(c) insert— ‘(d) the vehicle is not a taxi (3A) For the purposes of this paragraph, ‘taxi’ has the same meaning as in section 64 of the Transport Act 1980.’" Amendment 11, page 39, line 1, after "section", insert "(other than those made by subsection (4A)" Amendment 12, page 39, line 2, at end insert— "(8) The amendments made by subsection (4A) have effect in relation to licences taken out on or after the day on which this Act is passed." Amendment 13, in schedule 3, page 65, line 32, leave out from "and" to "or" in line 36 and insert "each of the conditions in subsection (1A) is met". This amendment, together with Amendment 14, provides that a pension scheme cannot be de-registered on grounds of the dormancy of a single company within the scheme, but only if conditions are met in relation to the date of first registration and the trading status of participating companies. Amendment 14, page 65, line 37, at end insert— "(4A) In section 158 (grounds for de-registration), after subsection (1), insert— (1A) The conditions in this subsection are that— (a) the scheme was registered in the current tax year or in the six preceding tax years, (b) no sponsoring employer in relation to the scheme is a body corporate that is actively trading at the time that withdrawal is being considered, and (c) no sponsoring employer in relation to the scheme is a body corporate that was actively trading for a period of at least twenty four months." See explanatory statement for Amendment 13. Government amendment 9.