Replace ‘outdated’ council tax, think tank urges
They say council tax and stamp duty should be scrapped
Council tax and stamp duty should be scrapped and replaced with something based on the value of homes, a think tank is urging.
IPPR said the current system is based on “outdated” property valuations which means council tax paid on expensive houses has lagged behind their soaring values.
A so-called proportional property tax of around 0.5% could mean three out of four households in England paying less, said its report.
IPPR argued that the change would help tackle regional inequalities, with people living in areas with lower house prices likely to gain.
Shreya Nanda, IPPR economist and author of the report, said: “The housing market has been almost entirely responsible for growing wealth inequality since the 1970s.
“Over this period, while consumer prices have increased by a factor of 11, house prices have increased a staggering 60 times. These gains should have been shared fairly across society, but instead they were captured by older, wealthier homeowners and landlords.
“Those who did not own property during the long house price boom have been locked out, and too many face steep rents, cramped flats, and eye-watering mortgages.
“A proportional property tax would instead ensure that these gains were shared more fairly across society.”
Published: by Radio NewsHub