PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
HARMONISATION OF VAT ON EMPTY HOMES (24 June 1998)

That this House deplores the waste of 800,000 empty homes in England and Wales; notes that to build a new home on a greenfield site VAT is zero-rated, yet to renovate a long standing empty home, builders are charged the full rate of 17.5 per cent.; calls on the Government to harmonise the VAT rates at 5 per cent. for new house building and the refurbishment of long standing empty homes; notes that placing these activities on a level playing field will provide the necessary incentives to the building industry and ensure a sustainable housing policy, which will help regenerate inner cities and protect the countryside; and further notes that the British Government Panel on Sustainable Development, the Civic Trust, the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England, the Chartered Institute of Housing, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Empty Homes Agency are among the many organisations supporting this proposal.

Sponsored by:
Jonathan Shaw (Labour)