The Westminster lensArchive · Written questions · 211 tabled · 208 answered

Written questions by Cross.

Every parliamentary written question tabled by Harriet Cross this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.

Department:All (211)Treasury (76)Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (47)Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (26)Department for Transport (15)Scotland Office (11)Cabinet Office (6)Department for Culture, Media and Sport (6)Department for Work and Pensions (6)Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (5)Ministry of Justice (4)Department of Health and Social Care (4)Department for Business and Trade (2)

Showing 4160 of 76 · Treasury

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28 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

Whether business planning development work will be a qualifying activity to access the £1.8 billion allocated in the National Wealth Fund for the upgrade of port infrastructure and supply chain facilities.

Reply

The National Wealth Fund has financial capacity totaling £27.8 billion, of which at least £5.8 billion will be committed over this Parliament to the five priority sectors that the Chancellor announced at the International Investment Summit, including ports.There are no unique or additional criteria for accessing this funding as it will be deployed in line with the National Wealth Fund’s standard approach, an overview of which can be found here: https://www.nationalwealthfund.org.uk/how-we-invest-principles-and-approach.This capital is available now - and will be targeted into investable projects that meet the National Wealth Fund’s investment criteria and mandate – driving growth, clean energy and creating the jobs of the future.Anyone with a potentially investable project can contact the National Wealth Fund via its website.

28 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What the criteria are for harbours and ports to access the £1.8 billion allocated in the National Wealth Fund for the upgrade of port infrastructure and supply chain facilities.

Reply

The National Wealth Fund has financial capacity totaling £27.8 billion, of which at least £5.8 billion will be committed over this Parliament to the five priority sectors that the Chancellor announced at the International Investment Summit, including ports.There are no unique or additional criteria for accessing this funding as it will be deployed in line with the National Wealth Fund’s standard approach, an overview of which can be found here: https://www.nationalwealthfund.org.uk/how-we-invest-principles-and-approach.This capital is available now - and will be targeted into investable projects that meet the National Wealth Fund’s investment criteria and mandate – driving growth, clean energy and creating the jobs of the future.Anyone with a potentially investable project can contact the National Wealth Fund via its website.

28 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

How companies can access the £1.8 billion allocated in the National Wealth Fund for the upgrade of port infrastructure and supply chain facilities.

Reply

The National Wealth Fund has financial capacity totaling £27.8 billion, of which at least £5.8 billion will be committed over this Parliament to the five priority sectors that the Chancellor announced at the International Investment Summit, including ports.There are no unique or additional criteria for accessing this funding as it will be deployed in line with the National Wealth Fund’s standard approach, an overview of which can be found here: https://www.nationalwealthfund.org.uk/how-we-invest-principles-and-approach.This capital is available now - and will be targeted into investable projects that meet the National Wealth Fund’s investment criteria and mandate – driving growth, clean energy and creating the jobs of the future.Anyone with a potentially investable project can contact the National Wealth Fund via its website.

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to the Energy Profits Levy on inward investment in the United Kingdom Continental Shelf.

Reply

At Autumn Budget 2024 the Government confirmed that from 1 November 2024, the Energy Profits Levy (EPL) rate would increase by 3 percentage points to 38%, the EPL investment allowance would be abolished and the EPL decarbonisation allowance rate would be adjusted to 66%. The duration of the levy was extended from 31 March 2029 until 31 March 2030. To support jobs in future and existing industries, including in the supply chain, the Government also decided to make no additional changes to the availability of capital allowances in the EPL. In addition, to support long-term stability and predictability in the oil and gas fiscal regime, the Government has committed to publish a consultation this year on how taxation of oil and gas profits will respond to price shocks after the EPL ends. The Government has carefully considered the impact of the Autumn Budget changes to the EPL. Treasury publishes impacts in summary form for tax measures in tax information and impact notes (TIINs) alongside the Finance Bill. The summary of impacts from the EPL changes can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/energy-profits-levy-reforms-2024

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to the Energy Profits Levy on inward investment in the United Kingdom Continental Shelf.

Reply

At Autumn Budget 2024 the Government confirmed that from 1 November 2024, the Energy Profits Levy (EPL) rate would increase by 3 percentage points to 38%, the EPL investment allowance would be abolished and the EPL decarbonisation allowance rate would be adjusted to 66%. The duration of the levy was extended from 31 March 2029 until 31 March 2030. To support jobs in future and existing industries, including in the supply chain, the Government also decided to make no additional changes to the availability of capital allowances in the EPL. In addition, to support long-term stability and predictability in the oil and gas fiscal regime, the Government has committed to publish a consultation this year on how taxation of oil and gas profits will respond to price shocks after the EPL ends. The Government has carefully considered the impact of the Autumn Budget changes to the EPL. Treasury publishes impacts in summary form for tax measures in tax information and impact notes (TIINs) alongside the Finance Bill. The summary of impacts from the EPL changes can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/energy-profits-levy-reforms-2024

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

Whether her Department has issued new impact assessments on (a) Agricultural Property Relief and (b) Business Property Relief since Autumn Budget 2024; what schedule her Department has for publishing future impact assessments; and what data sources her Department used to determine the estimate of 2,000 affected estates per year.

Reply

The Government believes its reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief from 6 April 2026 get the balance right between supporting farms and businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advantages available to owners of agricultural and business assets, but still mean those assets will be taxed at a much lower effective rate than most other assets. Despite a tough fiscal context, the Government will maintain very significant levels of relief from inheritance tax beyond what is available to others and compared to the position before 1992. Information from claims is not recorded to enable regional breakdowns of the number of estates expected to be affected. However, the reforms are expected to result in up to 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those also claiming business property relief, in 2026-27 paying more inheritance tax. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, will not pay any more tax as a result of the changes in 2026-27, based on the latest available data. The Government has also set out that around 1,500 estates across the UK only claiming business property relief are expected to be affected in 2026-27, with around 1,000 of these expected to only hold shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. The remaining 500 estates will include business assets from sectors across the economy that are eligible for business property relief. Around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed”) will not pay any more inheritance tax in 2026-27. The tax base consists of all estates subject to inheritance tax that are projected to claim agricultural property relief or business property relief across the scorecard period. The tax base is estimated using HMRC administrative data, and is grown over the forecast in line with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecast for inheritance tax receipts. More detail on the Government’s estimates, including why these projections should be viewed as a maximum, are also available in a letter from the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee in November 2024, which is available at committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What steps she plans to take to communicate with people affected by the McCloud remedy to ensure that they are (a) informed of changes to their pensions and (b) provided with regular updates on when they will receive any monies owed.

Reply

The McCloud remedy took effect from October 2023 and will deliver a full remedy to all affected public service pension scheme members. Schemes and responsible departments are making progress to ensure the remedy is delivered as quickly as possible. All affected members will receive a remediable service statement setting out the details of their pension entitlements and there are a range of other communication resources available to members. Pensioner members can make their remedy choice on receipt of this statement and active and deferred members will make their choice at retirement. The remedy has been estimated to increase pension entitlements by around £17bn. This will be paid out over many decades and in September 2024 the OBR forecast that spending on public service pensions will fall from 1.9 per cent of GDP at present to 1.4 per cent over the long term (50 years).

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What progress she has made on implementing the McCloud remedy since July 2024; and what steps she is taking to ensure (a) full and (b) timely delivery.

Reply

The McCloud remedy took effect from October 2023 and will deliver a full remedy to all affected public service pension scheme members. Schemes and responsible departments are making progress to ensure the remedy is delivered as quickly as possible. All affected members will receive a remediable service statement setting out the details of their pension entitlements and there are a range of other communication resources available to members. Pensioner members can make their remedy choice on receipt of this statement and active and deferred members will make their choice at retirement. The remedy has been estimated to increase pension entitlements by around £17bn. This will be paid out over many decades and in September 2024 the OBR forecast that spending on public service pensions will fall from 1.9 per cent of GDP at present to 1.4 per cent over the long term (50 years).

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the planned funding allocations for International Climate Finance in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26; and via which Departmental budgets will this be distributed.

Reply

The Prime Minister has confirmed that Official Development Assistance (ODA) is being reduced to 0.3% of GNI by 2027 to support increases to defence and security spending. Implications of the planned ODA reduction will be determined through Phase 2 of the Spending Review.

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What steps she is taking to ensure that people impacted by the McCloud remedy receive their entitlements promptly.

Reply

The McCloud remedy took effect from October 2023 and will deliver a full remedy to all affected public service pension scheme members. Schemes and responsible departments are making progress to ensure the remedy is delivered as quickly as possible. All affected members will receive a remediable service statement setting out the details of their pension entitlements and there are a range of other communication resources available to members. Pensioner members can make their remedy choice on receipt of this statement and active and deferred members will make their choice at retirement. The remedy has been estimated to increase pension entitlements by around £17bn. This will be paid out over many decades and in September 2024 the OBR forecast that spending on public service pensions will fall from 1.9 per cent of GDP at present to 1.4 per cent over the long term (50 years).

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What estimate she has made of the total cost of implementing the McCloud remedy; and how she plans to fund this.

Reply

The McCloud remedy took effect from October 2023 and will deliver a full remedy to all affected public service pension scheme members. Schemes and responsible departments are making progress to ensure the remedy is delivered as quickly as possible. All affected members will receive a remediable service statement setting out the details of their pension entitlements and there are a range of other communication resources available to members. Pensioner members can make their remedy choice on receipt of this statement and active and deferred members will make their choice at retirement. The remedy has been estimated to increase pension entitlements by around £17bn. This will be paid out over many decades and in September 2024 the OBR forecast that spending on public service pensions will fall from 1.9 per cent of GDP at present to 1.4 per cent over the long term (50 years).

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What steps she has taken to improve communications with people affected by the McCloud remedy; and what further steps she plans to take to ensure transparency.

Reply

The McCloud remedy took effect from October 2023 and will deliver a full remedy to all affected public service pension scheme members. Schemes and responsible departments are making progress to ensure the remedy is delivered as quickly as possible. All affected members will receive a remediable service statement setting out the details of their pension entitlements and there are a range of other communication resources available to members. Pensioner members can make their remedy choice on receipt of this statement and active and deferred members will make their choice at retirement. The remedy has been estimated to increase pension entitlements by around £17bn. This will be paid out over many decades and in September 2024 the OBR forecast that spending on public service pensions will fall from 1.9 per cent of GDP at present to 1.4 per cent over the long term (50 years).

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of changes to (a) Agricultural Property Relief and (b) Business Property Relief on trends in (a) employment levels, (b) business succession arrangements and (c) gross value added in (i) Scotland and (ii) the United Kingdom.

Reply

The Government believes its reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief from 6 April 2026 get the balance right between supporting farms and businesses, and fixing the public finances. The reforms reduce the inheritance tax advantages available to owners of agricultural and business assets, but still mean those assets will be taxed at a much lower effective rate than most other assets. Despite a tough fiscal context, the Government will maintain very significant levels of relief from inheritance tax beyond what is available to others and compared to the position before 1992. Information from claims is not recorded to enable regional breakdowns of the number of estates expected to be affected. However, the reforms are expected to result in up to 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those also claiming business property relief, in 2026-27 paying more inheritance tax. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, will not pay any more tax as a result of the changes in 2026-27, based on the latest available data. The Government has also set out that around 1,500 estates across the UK only claiming business property relief are expected to be affected in 2026-27, with around 1,000 of these expected to only hold shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. The remaining 500 estates will include business assets from sectors across the economy that are eligible for business property relief. Around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed”) will not pay any more inheritance tax in 2026-27. The tax base consists of all estates subject to inheritance tax that are projected to claim agricultural property relief or business property relief across the scorecard period. The tax base is estimated using HMRC administrative data, and is grown over the forecast in line with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecast for inheritance tax receipts. More detail on the Government’s estimates, including why these projections should be viewed as a maximum, are also available in a letter from the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee in November 2024, which is available at committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

21 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What recent analysis her Department has undertaken on the regional distribution of revenues from the abolition of the Furnished Holiday Lettings tax regime; and what proportion of this revenue is expected to be raised in Scotland.’

Reply

The Government will abolish the Furnished Holiday Lettings (FHL) tax regime from April 2025. The abolition of the FHL regime will raise £190m by 2029-30, which will help support public services across the United Kingdom, including in Scotland.

5 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) changes to (i) Agricultural Property Relief and (ii) Business Property Relief and (b) interest rates on (A) family farm succession planning and (B) food security.

Reply

The Chancellor wrote to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee about the reforms to agricultural and business property reliefs announced at the 2024 Autumn Budget: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. The UK Government’s analysis is based on the number of estates expected to pay more inheritance tax rather than the number of farms or businesses affected. This is because inheritance tax is a wealth transfer tax on the estate (the property, money, and possessions) of someone who has died. The number of claims for these reliefs, meaning how many estates would be impacted by this change, is affected by many things such as: who owns the business; the nature of that ownership; how many owners there are; the level of debt; and how they plan their affairs. The UK Government remains firmly of the view that claims data is the correct way to understand an inheritance tax liability. The reforms are expected to result in up to around 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim business property relief, paying more inheritance tax in 2026-27. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, would not pay more tax in 2026-27. Around 1,500 estates claiming only business property relief are expected to be affected in 2026-27, with around 1,000 of these holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. The remaining 500 estates will include business assets from sectors across the economy that are eligible for business property relief. These reforms mean that around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges) will not pay more inheritance tax in 2026-27. The costing for this tax change was certified as ‘reasonable and central’ by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) at Autumn Budget 2024. The OBR has published more detail about the assumptions underpinning the costing here: https://obr.uk/download/october-2024-economic-and-fiscal-outlook-costing-of-changes-to-agricultural-and-business-property-relief/?tmstv=1738846567. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

5 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to (a) Agricultural Property Relief and (b) Business Property Relief on (i) food security, (ii) agricultural investment and (iii) the viability of family-run farms.

Reply

The Chancellor wrote to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee about the reforms to agricultural and business property reliefs announced at the 2024 Autumn Budget: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. The UK Government’s analysis is based on the number of estates expected to pay more inheritance tax rather than the number of farms or businesses affected. This is because inheritance tax is a wealth transfer tax on the estate (the property, money, and possessions) of someone who has died. The number of claims for these reliefs, meaning how many estates would be impacted by this change, is affected by many things such as: who owns the business; the nature of that ownership; how many owners there are; the level of debt; and how they plan their affairs. The UK Government remains firmly of the view that claims data is the correct way to understand an inheritance tax liability. The reforms are expected to result in up to around 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim business property relief, paying more inheritance tax in 2026-27. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, would not pay more tax in 2026-27. Around 1,500 estates claiming only business property relief are expected to be affected in 2026-27, with around 1,000 of these holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. The remaining 500 estates will include business assets from sectors across the economy that are eligible for business property relief. These reforms mean that around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges) will not pay more inheritance tax in 2026-27. The costing for this tax change was certified as ‘reasonable and central’ by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) at Autumn Budget 2024. The OBR has published more detail about the assumptions underpinning the costing here: https://obr.uk/download/october-2024-economic-and-fiscal-outlook-costing-of-changes-to-agricultural-and-business-property-relief/?tmstv=1738846567. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

5 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What criteria on (a) total acreage, (b) agricultural land usage, (c) livestock numbers and (d) Rural Payments Agency claim data were used to define an agricultural holding for impact assessments of changes to (i) Agricultural Property Relief and (ii) Business Property Relief.

Reply

The Chancellor wrote to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee about the reforms to agricultural and business property reliefs announced at the 2024 Autumn Budget: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. The UK Government’s analysis is based on the number of estates expected to pay more inheritance tax rather than the number of farms or businesses affected. This is because inheritance tax is a wealth transfer tax on the estate (the property, money, and possessions) of someone who has died. The number of claims for these reliefs, meaning how many estates would be impacted by this change, is affected by many things such as: who owns the business; the nature of that ownership; how many owners there are; the level of debt; and how they plan their affairs. The UK Government remains firmly of the view that claims data is the correct way to understand an inheritance tax liability. The reforms are expected to result in up to around 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim business property relief, paying more inheritance tax in 2026-27. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, would not pay more tax in 2026-27. Around 1,500 estates claiming only business property relief are expected to be affected in 2026-27, with around 1,000 of these holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. The remaining 500 estates will include business assets from sectors across the economy that are eligible for business property relief. These reforms mean that around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges) will not pay more inheritance tax in 2026-27. The costing for this tax change was certified as ‘reasonable and central’ by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) at Autumn Budget 2024. The OBR has published more detail about the assumptions underpinning the costing here: https://obr.uk/download/october-2024-economic-and-fiscal-outlook-costing-of-changes-to-agricultural-and-business-property-relief/?tmstv=1738846567. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

5 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What assumptions on marital status were used in forecasts of farms impacted by changes to (a) Agricultural Property Relief and (b) Business Property Relief.

Reply

The Chancellor wrote to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee about the reforms to agricultural and business property reliefs announced at the 2024 Autumn Budget: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. The UK Government’s analysis is based on the number of estates expected to pay more inheritance tax rather than the number of farms or businesses affected. This is because inheritance tax is a wealth transfer tax on the estate (the property, money, and possessions) of someone who has died. The number of claims for these reliefs, meaning how many estates would be impacted by this change, is affected by many things such as: who owns the business; the nature of that ownership; how many owners there are; the level of debt; and how they plan their affairs. The UK Government remains firmly of the view that claims data is the correct way to understand an inheritance tax liability. The reforms are expected to result in up to around 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim business property relief, paying more inheritance tax in 2026-27. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, would not pay more tax in 2026-27. Around 1,500 estates claiming only business property relief are expected to be affected in 2026-27, with around 1,000 of these holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. The remaining 500 estates will include business assets from sectors across the economy that are eligible for business property relief. These reforms mean that around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges) will not pay more inheritance tax in 2026-27. The costing for this tax change was certified as ‘reasonable and central’ by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) at Autumn Budget 2024. The OBR has published more detail about the assumptions underpinning the costing here: https://obr.uk/download/october-2024-economic-and-fiscal-outlook-costing-of-changes-to-agricultural-and-business-property-relief/?tmstv=1738846567. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

5 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

How many farms impacted by changes to (a) Agricultural Property Relief and (b) Business Property Relief she expects to have previously claimed solely for Business Property Relief.

Reply

The Chancellor wrote to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee about the reforms to agricultural and business property reliefs announced at the 2024 Autumn Budget: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. The UK Government’s analysis is based on the number of estates expected to pay more inheritance tax rather than the number of farms or businesses affected. This is because inheritance tax is a wealth transfer tax on the estate (the property, money, and possessions) of someone who has died. The number of claims for these reliefs, meaning how many estates would be impacted by this change, is affected by many things such as: who owns the business; the nature of that ownership; how many owners there are; the level of debt; and how they plan their affairs. The UK Government remains firmly of the view that claims data is the correct way to understand an inheritance tax liability. The reforms are expected to result in up to around 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim business property relief, paying more inheritance tax in 2026-27. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, would not pay more tax in 2026-27. Around 1,500 estates claiming only business property relief are expected to be affected in 2026-27, with around 1,000 of these holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. The remaining 500 estates will include business assets from sectors across the economy that are eligible for business property relief. These reforms mean that around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges) will not pay more inheritance tax in 2026-27. The costing for this tax change was certified as ‘reasonable and central’ by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) at Autumn Budget 2024. The OBR has published more detail about the assumptions underpinning the costing here: https://obr.uk/download/october-2024-economic-and-fiscal-outlook-costing-of-changes-to-agricultural-and-business-property-relief/?tmstv=1738846567. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

5 Feb 2025·Treasury·Answered
Asked

What assumptions on the timing of intergenerational farm transfers were used in forecasts of farms affected by changes to (a) Agricultural Property Relief and (b) Business Property Relief.

Reply

The Chancellor wrote to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee about the reforms to agricultural and business property reliefs announced at the 2024 Autumn Budget: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. The UK Government’s analysis is based on the number of estates expected to pay more inheritance tax rather than the number of farms or businesses affected. This is because inheritance tax is a wealth transfer tax on the estate (the property, money, and possessions) of someone who has died. The number of claims for these reliefs, meaning how many estates would be impacted by this change, is affected by many things such as: who owns the business; the nature of that ownership; how many owners there are; the level of debt; and how they plan their affairs. The UK Government remains firmly of the view that claims data is the correct way to understand an inheritance tax liability. The reforms are expected to result in up to around 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim business property relief, paying more inheritance tax in 2026-27. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including those that also claim for business property relief, would not pay more tax in 2026-27. Around 1,500 estates claiming only business property relief are expected to be affected in 2026-27, with around 1,000 of these holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges, such as the Alternative Investment Market. The remaining 500 estates will include business assets from sectors across the economy that are eligible for business property relief. These reforms mean that around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges) will not pay more inheritance tax in 2026-27. The costing for this tax change was certified as ‘reasonable and central’ by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) at Autumn Budget 2024. The OBR has published more detail about the assumptions underpinning the costing here: https://obr.uk/download/october-2024-economic-and-fiscal-outlook-costing-of-changes-to-agricultural-and-business-property-relief/?tmstv=1738846567. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

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