Latest news with #secondHomes
Telegraph
15-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Eight in 10 councils did not assess impact of second homes tax raid
Eight in 10 councils charging the second homes premium failed to carry out impact assessments before introducing the policy, The Telegraph can reveal. Critics said it 'beggars belief' that town halls did not take into account the economic impact of the tax raid despite government guidance recommending they do so. More than 200 authorities in England brought in a 100pc council tax premium on second home owners from April 1. They were handed the power to do so by measures brought in by the previous Conservative government in 2023. Government documents released at the time said: 'Councils should carefully consider whether to charge a premium and make an assessment of possible impacts, including on the local population, its communities and the local economy.' However, just 27 (19pc) of the 145 local authorities that responded to a Freedom of Information request sent by the TaxPayers' Alliance said they had produced an impact assessment. They included: Camden, Cornwall, Durham and the Isle of Wight. Authorities in so-called 'holiday not-spots' such as Bradford, Coventry and Preston were among those who failed to carry out an assessment. Critics have repeatedly questioned why such areas, which have low proportions of second home owners, require the policy. Kevin Hollinrake, shadow housing minister, said: 'We know the Government hasn't carried out its own assessment of the impact of this tax. So it beggars belief that councils aren't doing so either. 'Local residents are already reeling from higher bills, lower income and record taxes because of this punishing Labour government. This will make things worse, not better.' The Government has repeatedly made clear that it is for 'councils to exercise their own judgement on whether to apply a premium'. The Telegraph is calling for the second home council tax surcharge to be slashed or abolished. So far, our campaign has revealed that as little as 9p in every £1 generated from the raid is being spent on affordable housing. The Telegraph also found that 55 authorities are locked in expensive disputes with second home owners who had appealed their bills. John O'Connell, of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: 'These latest revelations only further demonstrate how disastrous this policy has been, with taxpayers footing the bill for avarice of England's town halls. 'When designing this policy, ministers anticipated it would only be used in certain cases, and would be accompanied by impact assessments. Yet this has not been the case and in most of the country councils have simply used it as a naked cash grab. 'Labour now has a unique opportunity to reverse the harm done by the previous government and scrap this premium for the next financial year.' It comes after the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), run by Angela Rayner, came under criticism for refusing to investigate the national impact of the raid. In response to a question posed by Mr Hollinrake, the department said it was up to individual councils to decide if the policy was 'effective'. An MHCLG spokesman said: 'It is for councils to exercise their own judgement on whether to apply a premium and they should consider our statutory guidance on impacts and exceptions.' A spokesman for the Local Government Association said the second homes raid is a way of 'encouraging owners to bring these properties back into permanent use'. He added: 'However, we remain clear that council tax itself has never been the solution to meeting the long-term pressures.'
Telegraph
14-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
End the war on second home owners
If there is a defining characteristic of this Labour Government's time in office so far, it is a marked distaste for private wealth. Expanding the scope of the widely despised inheritance tax, raising capital gains taxes, and increasing stamp duty on second homes have painted a picture of a Government that appears to think private property exists only as a form of lease from the state, with regular service charges due. Sadiq Khan's insistence that the ability to levy a 100 per cent council tax premium on second homes is 'not enough', and that councils should 'have the power to charge much more for leaving your property vacant' fits neatly into this picture. Class warfare aside, it is unclear what would be achieved by further punishing second-home owners. While local authorities and the Treasury appear to be doing their level best to break the link between the sums households pay out in council tax and the services they receive, there is at least in theory a link between the two. Second home owners, being non-resident for at least part of the year, would appear to be a lesser burden on these services. The logical position in a market system would accordingly be that this group should, if anything, be charged a lower rate to reflect their lower demand for services. Regrettably, neither logic nor markets carry a great deal of weight with British politicians, and accordingly second home owners in over 200 authorities across England are now being asked to pay significant premiums. Given the appalling state of services in too many parts of the country, this is unjustifiable. Many councils are shirking their responsibility for road maintenance, failing to fix potholes, failing to collect the bins on a reasonable schedule, and failing to justify their entitlement to a large and growing annual tax payment. Part of the issue is that council budgets have been stretched to breaking point and beyond by ill-thought out policies on social care and housing. Treating second-home owners as cash cows, however, is a short-sighted step that will backfire, with ordinary residents bearing the cost. Over the long term, the tax incentivises second-home owners to sell up, lowering the value of neighbouring properties, and raising demand for services even as the revenue base shrinks. This is a tax that benefits nobody, with year-round residents bearing much of the burden. It should be abolished rather than raised.
The Independent
13-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Councils should be allowed to charge more than double council tax, says Khan
London's boroughs should be able to charge more than double council tax on second homes to free them up for people to live in, Sir Sadiq Khan has said. The Labour Mayor of London suggested he wanted councils in the capital to have more powers to ensure second homes and empty investment properties are in use. Speaking to LBC, Sir Sadiq was asked about measures to tackle the housing crisis in London. When asked about councils around the UK which charge double council tax on empty second homes, he told the broadcaster: 'That's not enough. 'I want councils to have the power to charge much more for leaving your property vacant.' He pointed to flats in Nine Elms, south west London, as an example of properties 'built like gold bricks investment'. Sir Sadiq said: 'They've not been lived in, because those who bought it know equity will go up and the price of the flat will go up, and they don't need to live there.' He added: 'Wandsworth, great council, the max they can charge is double council tax. 'I am not being funny, if you can afford a flat and leave it empty, you can pay double council tax. 'I think boroughs should be allowed to charge much, much more. We're lobbying the Government to give councils more powers to dis-incentivise leaving a property empty.' The London Mayor last week announced plans to 'actively explore' building on some of London's green belt in a bid to fix the capital's housing crisis. The announcement marked a change in stance for Sir Sadiq, who previously argued against releasing green belt land while there are still previously developed brownfield sites available.
