I received an enquiry from someone representing a group in Italy who are trying to promote LVT. The enquirer was looking for data to show what the impact of a change from existing taxes to LVT would be. Unfortunately, I was not able to provide such information, and there is none on this web site. The link at the bottom of the article attempts to explain why. Within the LVT movement, the approach...

There are several articles on this website about how Land Value Tax (LVT) might be implemented, and also on other web sites such as that of the Labour Land Campaign. The proposal by the campaign Fairer Share is another approach at reform, in the same general direction. There is a comprehensive discussion of the topic on the LVTC website here. Advocates of LVT generally take the view that the...

We live in the real world and accept that it would take a decade or more to phase in LVT and phase out most other taxes. This is not all-or-nothing and can be done in stages. Every small step in the right direction is a step in the right direction, even if we never “get there”. We have explained the main stages and running order for the transition under the heading “How much will I pay?” Replacing...

An article in the Guardian today reports that “Offshore companies buying UK property could be forced to reveal their ultimate owners under plans being considered by ministers to crack down on tax evasion and money laundering. The proposals would shine a spotlight on the foreign firms that hold billions of pounds in British property without having to declare who is behind them. It could also...

A crackdown on the rich and famous who own mansions through offshore companies is on course to raise five times more than expected. Pop stars, actors and jetsetters were able to avoid paying stamp duty when they bought and sold multi-million pound properties by selling it as part of a ‘company’ based abroad. A move to close the loophole had been expected to raise £20million this year,...

The tax is payable on all land, with no concessions, allowances or thresholds. Allowances have the effect of reducing the amount of existing taxes that can be abolished. Thresholds could, in addition, lead to avoidance by sub-division of land plots. The rate of tax is set nationally and at the same rate for all classes of land. Local authorities should not be free to set their own rate of LVT. There...

We want your views A difficulty with any form of local taxation is that resources and needs do not match. Consider, on the one hand, the London boroughs of Westminster, and on the other, boroughs such as Haringey, Lewisham and Newham, just outside the central area. In Westminster are to be found Parliament, major centres of shopping and employment, and some of the most sought-after residential areas...

Partly as a result of the discussions that have been taking place under the sponsorship of the Coalition for Economic Justice, of which the Campaign is a member, we have had further thoughts on how LVT might be introduced. The concern that has been expressed centres around the role of local taxation. Put simply, there is a lot of land value in some local authority areas and very little in others,...

LVT – a ten point plan for introduction

The former London County Council introduced a Bill to the 1938-39 Session of Parliament for the implementation of site value rating, based on annual rental values, within the administrative county of London. It was of course rejected, though, interestingly, on a technicality. The drafting of this Bill comes close to what we would regard as the model for the collection of annual rental values for...