VAT on the Home Information Pack

[flip-flop]

Isn't this just a tax on a tax? (and, of course, it is taxed income that pays for it).

[Lonnie]

By name at least, we have a Labour goverment, throught post war history, Labour have always been the party of high and higher tax, just doesn't surprise me at all.

[jake-the-peg]

Surely that's a virtually meaningless statement.

Pretty much any form of secondary taxation can be described in that way:

VAT and before that Purchase tax, alcohol, petrol and tobacco duties, stamp duty etc. etc.

Your logic would imply that all tax other than income tax should be scrapped and replaced with higher income tax.

That is a bad idea because we have no control over income tax, you earn what you earn and are taxed accordingly. With indirect taxation you at least have some small degree of control. You can choose how much you spend or save - If you buy a car with a huge engine you pay more tax on petrol, if you drink and smoke you pay more there.

[flip-flop]

The point I was (rather clumsily it appears) trying to make is that isn't VAT on the HIP a tax being applied to a tax?

We don't pay VAT on Stamp Duty (yet!).

[jake-the-peg]

You pay stamp duty with funds that are subject to income tax so in that sense it's taxed twice, alcohol etc is taxed 3 times

I don't think the HIP is a tax - you're paying a solicitor or whoever to compile all the information a purchaser would otherwise have to pay for at the moment. So the burden is taken from the homebuyer onto the home seller.

Whether that's good or bad is up to you but it's not a tax.

Actually you could make a fair case for the total abolition of income tax and place the entire burden on indirect taxation - it's probably impractical but it's an interesting idea - don't think the tourist industry would be too pleased!

[raysparx]

Can't think of many things that aren't taxed to the hilt can you?

[Lonnie]

Just on Income Tax, that was only introduced to pay for the Napoleanic Wars, and should have been scrapped when they ended, in fact, they were scrapped once, but brought back again.

[VINNY100_2]

The show must go on...........(:).

yo

[archbishop]

jake-the-peg The original idea of of The Treaty of Rome was to abolish ALL taxes except VAT. The idea being that it was up to the individual how much they paid. You want luxuries you paid through the teeth. Basic foods would have no tax.

[archbishop]

The HIP is a service provided by the solicitor and therefore vatable.