Finance (No. 2) Bill Committee: New Clause 12
167Ayes
350Noes
Defeated · majority 183 · Government won128 did not vote
645 Members · Aye 167 · No 350 · DNV 128 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
On 12 January 2026, MPs voted on New Clause 12 to the Finance (No. 2) Bill, which would have required the Chancellor of the Exchequer to publish a formal assessment of how higher income tax rates on property income affect rent prices. The clause was defeated by 350 votes to 167 (Division 398). The Finance (No. 2) Bill introduces new rates of income tax on property income, set at two percentage points above the main income tax rate for the 2027-28 tax year. New Clause 12 would have compelled the government to assess what proportion of those higher taxes landlords pass on to tenants through rent increases, broken down by region and income level. Defeating the clause means no such mandatory review will take place; the government will instead rely on existing tax information and impact notes and its own monitoring of the rental market. The vote divided almost entirely along party lines. All 341 Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted did so against the clause. Conservatives (92), Liberal Democrats (60), the Democratic Unionist Party (5), Plaid Cymru (4), and Reform UK (4) all voted in favour. The Green Party and the two Your Party MPs voted against alongside Labour. No notable cross-party rebellions were recorded. The defeat fits a broader pattern in which the government has used its Commons majority to resist opposition-tabled review and reporting requirements during scrutiny of the Finance (No. 2) Bill.
Voting Aye meant
Support requiring a formal government assessment of how higher property income taxes affect rents, arguing landlords will pass costs to tenants and Parliament needs accountability for record tax rises.
Voting No meant
Oppose the mandatory review as unnecessary, arguing tax information and impact notes already cover this and that the Treasury will continue monitoring the rental market.
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped No
0
305
56
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
92
0
24
Liberal Democrats
Whipped Aye
59
0
12
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped No
0
36
6
Independent
—
3
4
6
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
9
Reform UK
Whipped Aye
4
0
4
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
5
0
0
Green Party of England and Wales
Whipped No
0
4
0
Plaid Cymru
Whipped Aye
4
0
0
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
0
1
1
Your Party
—
0
2
0
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
0
0
1
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
1
0
0
Ulster Unionist Party
—
1
0
0
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
Government measures are fair, necessary, and progressive; they raise revenue from those undertaxed relative to employees while protecting public services and maintaining lowest borrowing levels.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (11,197 words) →
Bill represents broken manifesto promises and a 'war on landlords,' savers, and small businesses; threshold freeze and asset income tax hikes total £23 billion and will harm ordinary working people and enterprise culture.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (4,456 words) →
Dividend tax increase is right because wealth taxation has not kept pace with economic change; comparative evidence from France shows it encourages reinvestment and is easily implementable.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (1,788 words) →
Tax changes add unwarranted complexity, burden small businesses, risk unintended rental market consequences, and strain HMRC resources; impact assessments essential before implementation.Liberal Democrat · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,593 words) →
Changes overtax risk and enterprise, destroying incentive culture; dividend taxation contradicts government's own growth objectives and continues damaging trend of taxing return on investment.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (292 words) →
Tax changes hit lower and middle-income families unfairly; 4.8 million more individuals will pay higher rate and 600,000 will enter additional rate, while millionaires can afford it.DUP · Voted aye · Read full speech (505 words) →
Government claims of fairness contradicted by numerous U-turns since Budget announcement; questions credibility of stated good effects.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (53 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0